The Maldives is seeing a spike in COVID cases, but the main concern is that people are not sharing accurate information during contract tracing.

According to Dr. Nazla Rafeeq, the Health Emergency Operation Centre (HEOC) spokesperson, a record number of positive cases are being registered in the Maldives, but the biggest concern is that accurate information is not being shared during contact tracing.

This includes withholding information on those who were in contact with the infected person, which sometimes leads to life-threatening situations.

Dr. Nazla further said that although one may not be aware that they have been infected with COVID-19, their condition could still deteriorate unexpectedly, putting them in dangerous situations.

This is especially true in high-risk cases, she said.

She said it is really important for people to share correct information in the fight against COVID-19 and stressed that it could save many lives.

The island nation has recorded a total of 20,280 virus cases of which 2,615 are active cases, in addition to 17,595 recoveries. About 63 deaths have been reported.

With the sudden spike in numbers, the Health Protection Agency (HPA) has introduced a new curfew which restricts people’s movements on the road and public spaces for certain hours. Even vehicular movements have been banned for certain hours.

These restrictions have been implemented across capital Male', its suburbs Vilimale' and Hulhumale', airport island Hulhule', industrial island Gulhifalhu, and landfill island Thilafushi, officials said.