COVID-19: Maldives records 22 new cases, 12 recoveries

Health Protection Agency (HPA) announced an additional 22 individuals tested positive for COVID-19 in Maldives, while 12 more recoveries were recorded.

According to the HPA, the new cases include four Maldivians, 14 Bangladeshi nationals and four Sri Lankan citizens.

With these developments, Maldives presently records a total of 2,305 confirmed cases, out of which 417 are active cases of COVID-19. Thus far, the country records 1,875 recoveries and eight fatalities.

COVID-19 outbreak in the Maldives’ capital has disproportionately affected its migrant worker population, the majority of whom are Bangladeshi nationals living in highly congested quarters where it is impossible to reduce contact or exercise social distancing.

Their often small-spaced living conditions have been described by local and international civil society organizations as, "claustrophobic", "unsanitary" and "overcrowded".

As one of the most densely populated cities in the world, Maldives' capital Malé recorded a significant increase in COVID-19 cases in the first weeks following the first confirmed local transmission on April 15.

However, the number of recoveries have continued to rise, with approximately 81 percent of patients now recovered.

On March 12, WHO classified the spread of COVID-19 as a global pandemic. To date, the new strain of novel coronavirus has infected over 9.9 million people and claimed over 498,700 lives around the world. However, out of those infected, more than 5.4 million people have recovered.