COVID19: Cyprus new cases drop to single digit

Cyprus reported only one new case of coronavirus infections on Sunday, arising from 216 tests completed as part of referrals from GPs and special groups screening at public health centres.

The Ministry of Health said it conducted 1,445 tests for the SARS-CoV-2 virus with no positive results in other categories, raising the total of COVID19 cases on the island to 1,003.

A day earlier, the 1,000-mark was breached when one new case was reported, a football player with Apollon FC who returned from Serbia, and two others carried out at the initiative of the company which employs them.

The footballer was Djordje Denic, who arrived on the island from Serbia three days ago and underwent a test at the Limassol club’s initiative.

Apollon issued a statement confirming their player tested positive.

Almost all recent cases were people infected abroad and returning home to Cyprus, resulting in a frenzy of contact tracing by the authorities to identify and isolate positive cases.

The employers and hoteliers have been pressing the state to relax the restrictions on foreign arrivals, particularly from major markets such as Britain, in order to kick-start the tourist industry and the economy.

The state, too, is concerned that with an economic crisis looming ahead, public revenues will fall and will make the high-cost civil service unaffordable, reminiscent of the 2012-2013 economic crisis that paved the way for a multi-billion European bailout, coupled with a host of mandatory reforms.