Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean, Coordinating Minister for National Security, shared on March 19 that he remains in communication with Malaysia's Defence Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob on the movement of Malaysians from Malaysia to Singapore during this lockdown period.

Possible agreement on movement between Singapore and Malaysia?

In his post, Teo said he had a "good and productive call" with Ismail Sabri, who is also the Senior Minister responsible for coordinating security issues.

Around 300,000 workers usually traverse the Causeway each day.

Teo said:

"We are coordinating the measures between our two countries to facilitate Malaysian workers to continue working in Singapore, and the flow of goods, while safeguarding the health of Singaporeans & Malaysians."

Teo added that they agreed to form working groups to sort out the implementation details.

More details will be announced on March 20.

Malaysia on lockdown

Earlier on March 17, Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin announced a lockdown of Malaysia as part of a Covid-19 containment strategy.

No Malaysians could leave country, while no foreign visitors could enter from March 18 to 31.

However, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong clarified that the supply of essential goods would continue to enter Singapore from Malaysia despite the lockdown.

Johor's chief minister stated that he hoped that the border with Singapore could open soon, albeit with stringent health checks.

Ismail Sabri also said that Malaysian workers could possibly enter Singapore to work, as long as accommodation is provided for them.

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Top image from Ismail Sabri Yaakob's Facebook page.