Georgian authorities reduce night-time curfew, allow open-air terraces and cafes to operate on weekends

Following the meeting of the Interagency Coordination Council, Georgian authorities have announced that the existing curfew will be reduced, and will now be in effect from 23.00 – 05.00:

“Based on a detailed analysis of the epidemiological situation in the country, the council has made a decision to ease some restrictions. In particular, starting from today, the restriction on movement will be effective from 23:00 to 05:00”, said one of the members of the council.

The 21.00 – 05.00 has been in effect for 6 months and has only been lifted twice – on New Year’s eve and on the eve of the Orthodox Christmas celebrations.

The Interagency Council has also made a decision to permit cafes and restaurants with outdoor terraces to serve customers over the weekend. Restrictions on large gatherings and celebrations remain in effect in Georgia. Giorgi Ghibradze, Chief of the Operational Staff at the Interagency Coordination Council stated that the epidemiological situation in the country will be monitored closely, and the council will revisit the issue of easing more regulations on June 1.

Earlier today, during the briefing of the National Center for Disease Control, center’s head Amiran Gamkrelidze stated that Georgia is currently going through the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. He added that the situation is improving, but the death rates remain high:

“Death rates act as one of the most important indicators, and, unfortunately, in our country, the death rates remain quite high. The death rates increase two weeks after the peak of the virus spread. Right now, we are entering this stage, which is why we should follow all the regulations even more carefully,” Gamkrelidze explained.

As of the last 24 hours, 504 new cases of the COVID-19 have been detected in Georgia, as well as 2,038 recoveries and 27 deaths. A total of 11,665 tests have been conducted, 5,528 of which were PCR tests and the remaining 6,137 were rapid tests. The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Georgia since February 2020 has reached 330,879, 310,859 of which have recovered and 4,469 have died. Out of the 504 new cases recorded in Georgia over the last 24 hours, 263 have been detected in Tbilisi.