Uzbekistan to ease lockdown starting August 15

Uzbekistan will lift its second lockdown starting from Saturday, the government said on Wednesday, promising to restore most services within days in order to revive the economy. The government reintroduced a lockdown last month after lifting restrictions in June led to a surge in new COVID-19 cases, leaving hospitals struggling to cope.

Starting Saturday, August 15, people will be allowed to drive their cars again and hold ceremonies such as weddings for up to 30 guests at their homes. Businesses such as hotels, barbershops and outdoor cafes will also be able to reopen and air and rail traffic will resume, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev's office said in a statement. Public transportation, except underground, will resume with the beginning of the next week. Big bazars, fitness clubs, sport complexes, as well as swimming pools will reopen on August 20.

The Republican Anti-Coronovirus Commission has been tasked to define clear rules for each type of activity within the framework of sanitary requirements. Moreover, people who have arrived from abroad will enjoy simplified quarantine procedure, provided that they arrive from countries with a stable epidemiological situation. The sanitary and epidemiological service is instructed to establish a systematic analysis of antibodies to monitor the process of formation of collective immunity.