SUVA, March 15 (Xinhua) -- Fiji and Samoa, both having no confirmed cases of COVID-19, announced on Sunday night stricter measures to tighten their border controls and travel restrictions at all ports of entry as the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared a global pandemic following the ongoing spread of the virus.
In Fiji, Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama said in a statement that Fiji will ban cruise ships and international events from Monday.
"From tomorrow, cruise ships will be banned from berthing anywhere in Fiji. Also from tomorrow, international events will not be allowed in Fiji and local events will be closed to all guests coming in from overseas," he said.
He also said that government ministers, civil servants, permanent secretaries and staff of statutory bodies in the island nation will be restricted from travelling overseas barring exceptionally critical circumstances.
The prime minister highly discouraged all Fijians from travelling overseas, saying that if people do choose to travel anywhere outside of Fiji, they may be required to self-isolate for 14 days upon their return to Fiji, even if they are not displaying symptoms of this virus.
Bainimarama stressed that this is not a time for panic, but a time for prudence. They have already made a number of critical unbudgeted expenditures to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. But it's clear they need to reassess their spending priorities for the remainder of the financial year.
Meanwhile, the Samoan government also announced stricter measures to tackle the virus, saying that though there is still no case of COVID-19 in Samoa, health officials have strengthened border requirements and travel restrictions at all ports of entry, as the WHO declared a global pandemic.
