The Cabinet, during its meeting on 25 May 2021, approved the extension period of the enforcement of the Declaration of an Emergency Situation in all areas of the Kingdom for another two months, effective from 1 June to 31 July 2021. The objective is to contain local COVID-19 transmission in the country.
The Cabinet was told that the spread of COVID-19 infection still continued at the global level and remained serious in some countries, such as India and Japan. The situation in Thailand’s neighboring countries, such as Malaysia, Myanmar, and Cambodia, is also worrisome.
In Thailand, clusters of infections are likely to continue in such risk areas as fresh markets, prisons, congested communities, and mass transport systems, especially in Bangkok and its vicinity. The long holiday from 24 to 28 July 2021 is expected to see a great number of people in interprovincial travel, which is likely to increase the risk of transmission.
Thailand has decided to suspend the issuance of certificates of entry (COE) to all foreigners travelling to Thailand from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Nepal in order to prevent the Indian COVID-19 variant from spreading into the country.
The recent meeting of the Office of the National Security Council, as the coordinating office of the Center for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA), deemed it necessary to continue the Declaration of an Emergency Situation in all areas of the Kingdom, under the Emergency Decree on Public Administration in Emergency Situations B.E. 2548 (2005).
The Office submitted the proposal on the extension period of the enforcement of the Declaration of an Emergency Situation to the Cabinet for approval on 25 May, so that responsible officials would have sufficient power to set necessary preventive measures to stem the spread of COVID-19, in order to reduce the number of deaths and bring the situation back to normalcy as soon as possible.