The Health Ministry on Friday said it would establish three new laboratories that can test samples for Covid-19 as international arrivals to Cambodia have risen to up to 900 people per day following a drastic drop in tourist entries amid the global pandemic.
![A woman holds a sign saying “The pain of the people is the pain of Samdech [Prime Minister Hun Sen]” as nightlife workers filed a petition to the premier’s cabinet asking for aid on June 25, 2020. (Hy Chhay/VOD)](https://vodenglish.news/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/2020-06-25-nightlife-worker-petition-462x290.jpg)
Many nightlife industry workers — from bartenders to waitresses — have gone months without a stable salary, and some say they are discouraged by the lack of social welfare funding for their sector’s workers.
Prime Minister Hun Sen on Monday said the government would distribute about $25 million per month to assist families registered in the IDPoor social benefits system as the country struggles through the pandemic-driven economic downturn.
Foreign travelers may be required to pay more than $1,000 for Covid-19 testing, treatment and quarantine fees upon arriving in Cambodia, a departure from Prime Minister Hun Sen’s earlier vow to treat foreigners infected with the virus for free in state health facilities.
Local industry groups have asked the E.U. to postpone the partial withdrawal of Cambodia’s tariff-free access to the European bloc for a year to allow the garment sector time to recover from the ongoing pandemic-spurred economic crisis.
Cambodia could see negative growth this year — for the first time since 1994 — due to the pandemic-spurred economic crisis, the World Bank projected on Friday, estimating even more severe hits to the nation’s key industries than it did two months ago.
Cambodian citizens will be allowed to enter the country without a health certificate declaring them free of Covid-19, which is required for arriving foreign nationals, Prime Minister Hun Sen announced on Wednesday.
The Cambodian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur has told Cambodian citizens in Malaysia, including 143 people who have been trying to return home since last month, to attain documents certifying they are free of Covid-19 if they wish to be allowed back in the country. But some say they cannot afford to pay for the health reports.
The government on Wednesday lifted a ban on travelers arriving from six countries, four days after the Health Ministry said the last remaining Covid-19 patient of Cambodia’s 122 confirmed cases had recovered from the virus.
The Health Ministry on Monday warned citizens to follow hygienic practices and avoid restaurants that fail to take precautions against the spread of Covid-19 as Cambodia nears a month without identifying a single new coronavirus infection.
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