PETALING JAYA: The government has decided to postpone its plans to transition the country into the endemic phase of the Covid-19 National Recovery Plan (NRP) pending more information on the Omicron variant of concern, said Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein(pix).
He said this was decided by the Cabinet after a meeting earlier today.
He said the government will also tighten border controls for countries that have reported the spread of the new variant.
“The Health Ministry will announce further details about the travel restrictions in due course,” he said.
The World Health Organization yesterday warned that the Omicron variant poses a “very high” risk globally, while earlier today, Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said the variant, which was first detected in South Africa last Wednesday, is “probably more transmissible” than the Delta variant.
Earlier this month, Hishammuddin had said the transition to the endemic phase would be done simultaneously across the country and based on international criteria, including those set by WHO.-Bernama
