Lebanese cabinet on Friday approved a five-phase plan to reopen the country after a lockdown aimed at stemming the outbreak of coronavirus.
After approving a draft decree aimed at extending the declaration of public mobilization, announced on March 15, for two more weeks, the cabinet endorsed a plan to open sectors in a manner that takes into consideration potential risks within the categories of economic activities, Information Minister Manal Abdel Samad announced.
In a press briefing following a lengthy cabinet session at Baabda Presidential session, Abdel Samad said that the first phase begins on April 27, noting that the most priority and the least dangerous economic activities will resume in this stage.
This phase involves the reopening of the food and agriculture sectors, small and retail shops, sweets shops, hotels, some factories and the electricity and water sectors, the minister added, according to Local media.
The second phase begins on May 4 and will see the reopening of the remaining factories, restaurants and cafes (30% capacity, no shisha), children parks, outdoors sports courts, barber and hairdressing shops and car repair shops, a cabinet decree said.
The third phase starts on May 11. It involves the reopening of nurseries (below 3 years), institutions for people with special needs, Casino du Liban (70% capacity for gambling, 30% for restaurants) and car agencies.
The fourth phase starts on May 25 and will entail the resumption of the Brevet and Baccalaureate classes at schools, the reopening of universities, malls and shopping centers while allowing cafes and restaurants to raise their capacity from 30 to 50%, Naharnet Lebanese news website reported, citing a cabinet decree.
The last phase, which begins on June 8, will see the reopening of nurseries (3 to 6 years), schools and vocational institutes, pubs, nightclubs, touristic sites, pools, beaches and promenades, gyms and spas, museums, theaters, cinemas, places of worship, religious events, construction sites and entertainment centers (50% capacity) while buses and planes will be allowed to operate.
Source: Al-Manar English Website and Local media
