The Minister of State and also head of the Military House of the President of the Republic stressed that the pandemic "is controlled throughout the country", which is why new measures were announced to deal with the covid-19 disease.
However, Francisco Furtado stressed the need to continue to observe biosecurity rules, namely the use of a mask, social distance and maintenance of hygiene.
"Angola is reaching the end of the fourth wave, but this will only be possible if the rules continue to be respected", he stressed.
The ban on access to beaches, swimming pools and marinas in the country came into force on October 1, 2021, just two weeks after these leisure spaces were reopened.
The spaces had reopened on September 16, 2021, after more than a year and a half of interdiction and the closure was decreed two weeks after reopening due to the significant increase in positive cases during September, with a growth rate of about 13 percent.
In his speech, Francisco Furtado underlined the need for everyone to have the complete vaccination (two doses), that is, they will have to prove it through the vaccination certificate, under penalty of the ban on access to public and closed spaces, in public and private institutions.
In the case of access to workplaces, those who do not have the two doses of vaccine will also be unable to enter and will be charged with absence.
Angola vaccinated 3.2 million people during the month of January and, in February, the total number of people immunized is just 50 percent of that total, revealed Francisco Furtado.
In total, 5.480 million Angolans have just the first dose of the vaccine, he added.
The reopening of beaches, swimming pools and marinas will only take place on March 5th to ensure the adoption of control and security mechanisms for these spaces, but in other activities, such as access to commercial establishments, attendance of religious ceremonies, attending sports shows and other types and use of public transport, the new measures come into force on March 1st and will remain in effect until March 31st.
In the situations foreseen to come into force from March 1st, there is no longer any capacity limitation, but the presentation of the vaccination certificate with reference to the taking of the two doses of vaccine will always be required.
After 31 March, depending on the evolution of the pandemic in Angola, the multisectoral commission will announce any changes to what will come into force from 1 March.
As for travel within Angola and arrivals across land borders and at international airports, entry into the country is limited to those who present a vaccination certificate with two doses of vaccine.
In the case of entering the country, those who do not have the second dose will be immunized on the spot, but will have to undergo a seven-day quarantine/isolation, Francisco Furtado also announced.
Covid-19 has caused at least 5.9 million deaths worldwide since the beginning of the pandemic, according to the latest report by the Agence France-Presse.
The respiratory disease is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, detected in late 2019 in Wuhan, a city in central China.
The rapidly spreading and mutating Ómicron variant has become dominant in the world since it was first detected in November in South Africa.
