The Republic of Korea has contributed COVID-19 prevention items worth USD 400,000, including test kits to Bhutan
Sri Lanka needs well-designed political and economic policy changes for long-term recovery
The government has taken steps to address shortages of fuel and gas to some extent when compared to the earlier situation which had long queues that stretched for kilometres outside fuel and gas stations. But a well-planned recovery plan still cannot be seen that can address the long-term food security issues.
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Sri Lanka mulls reopening airports from August 1
The Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 has recommended reopening airports from August 1, ending a three-month long shutdown following the outbreak of the coronavirus
Mission in Qatar directed to immediately find accommodation for stranded Sri Lankans
Sri Lanka Foreign Secretary Ravinatha Aryasinha has directed the Sri Lankan embassy in Qatar to immediately find accommodation for the stranded Sri Lankans after the flight scheduled to bring them back was cancelled
90 Sri Lankans repatriated from Kuwait
A total of 157 Sri Lankans who returned from overseas have tested positive for COVID-19 so far, Commander of Army Lieutenant General Shavendra Silva said
Bangladesh reports 21 more virus deaths, 1,166 new cases
Bangladesh has registered new fatalities from the novel coronavirus infection in a daily count, raising the death toll to 522
EU announces 1.1m euro to minimise Bangladesh’s Amphan damages
The European Union (EU) has decided to provide 1.1 million euro to Bangladesh for helping recover damages triggered by cyclone Amphan last week
WHO pledges further support as Maldives prepares to reopen schools
The Maldives' education ministry announced the World Health Organization (WHO) has agreed to provide further support to the preparations to reopen schools in Maldives
More than 2,000 stranded travelers quarantined
National Emergency Operations Center (NEOC) has announced that more than 2,000 travelers left stranded in Male’ due to the lockdown on the capital have been taken to transit quarantine facilities where they will undergo mandatory quarantine before being allowed to return to their home islands
Virus-free islands allowed to resume sports activities
Youth Ministry, on Tuesday, announced the Health Protection Agency (HPA) and the Technical Advisory Group (TAG) have stated they have no objection to allowing islands which have no experienced cases of the new coronavirus and islands which have been free from monitoring for 14 days to resume sports activities
Antibody tests pick up more virus cases in Maldives that had gone undetected
The Maldives' Health Protection Agency (HPA) on Monday announced the antibody tests initiated by the agency last week had picked up several people who contracted and recovered from the new coronavirus unbeknown to them
Sri Lanka to relax curfew in Colombo
Sri Lankan authorities said a curfew in capital Colombo and the outskirts of Gampaha, which was imposed on March 24 to prevent the spread of COVID-19, will be relaxed on Tuesday
Afghan government releases 100 Taliban inmates
The Afghan government freed 100 Taliban inmates as a goodwill gesture, spokesperson of Office of the National Security Council confirmed
Peace negotiation team says it is ready for intra-Afghan talks
Members of the Afghan peace negotiation team on Sunday said that they have completed their internal group discussion on the peace process and the team is ready to start peace negotiation talks with the Taliban
40 percent of Afghanistan's factories halt operations as business declines
Afghanistan's Chamber of Mines and Commerce said that 40 percent of factories across the country have halted their activities due to a lack of raw material and lack of market demand
Nepal plans to increase COVID-19 testing
Due to the growing number of COVID-19 cases in Nepal, the country has planned to increase testing for the virus substantially to identify the infection early, Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli said
