A cabinet meeting chaired by President Paul Kagame on Wednesday, May 5, further relaxed Covid-19 restrictions in most parts of the country as new infections drop and more people get vaccinated. 

Movements are now permitted up to 10 p.m., allowing restaurants and business to operate longer. The previous guidelines had curfew set at 9 p.m.

Gyms that have been closed  for more than a year now, will gradually resume operations after getting a green light from government  authorities. 

However, restrictions remain in parts of the country that continue to record higher rates of new infections.

Movements remain prohibited between 7 p.m., through 4 a.m, in all Southern Province districts except Muhanga and Kamonyi, as part of the efforts to control the recent spike in infections in the region.

"A detailed reopening schedule [of gyms] will be communicated after a readiness assessment conducted by the Ministry of Sports,” reads part of a statement released by the Prime Minister’s office.

Bars will remain closed while gaming activities are still prohibited.

The cabinet also approved an increase in public transportation, with buses allowed  a capacity of 75 per cent capacity, up from the previous 50 per cent.

Travelling to Rwanda

The cabinet also resolved that arriving and departing passengers at the Kigali International Airport must present a negative Covid-19 PCR test taken within 72 hours prior to departure.

For passengers arriving from India, the cabinet resolved that they are required to complete seven days in mandatory quarantine upon arrival at a designated hotel on their cost.

India has seen an upsurge in the pandemic and as of Wednesday, the country had 21,070,852 cases.

The new measures will be reviewed end May  upon a health assessment, according to the statement.

As of May 4, a total number of 25,421 Covid-19 cases had been recorded in the country and out of these, 23,710 patients had already recovered.

Overall, 338 people have succumbed to the virus in the country since March 2020.