As more Covid-19 patients are being discharged, and fewer new cases in the community in Singapore being reported each day, our nation-state is in a good position to start preparing for the next phase of easing some of the circuit breaker measures, Minister for National Development Lawrence Wong said on Friday, May 15.

Reopening has to be done in a careful manner

Wong, who is also the co-chair of the Multi-ministry Taskforce on Covid-19, said at a press conference that as Singapore restarts its economy, more people will be allowed to return to work.

But he cautioned that as more activities resume, the country has be "very careful" to prevent the number of new cases from spiking, and to prevent large clusters from forming again.

This is why the country will need to go about the resumption of activities in a cautious and "step by step" approach, he said.

Number of cases in community likely to rise after country reopens, but can be controlled

He warned at the same time, however, that as the country opens up, and as some of the circuit breaker measures currently in place are rolled back, Singapore is likely to see the number of cases in the community going up.

However, if the country's reopening is done in a careful manner, even if cases in the community go up, it will rise "slowly" and remain under control, Wong said.

The government will also step up its contact tracing and quarantine efforts to minimise the risk of transmission in the community and minimise the risk of large clusters being formed.

Therefore, "the strategy is to do it carefully and slowly", Wong added.

Single-digit community cases in past 5 days

In the past five days, Singapore reported a sustained single-digit number of community cases.

According to MOH's definition, "community cases" refer to the incidence of spread among Singaporeans, PRs and Work Pass holders.

Migrant workers to resume work only if they are cleared from the virus

Wong added that while the Ministry of Manpower has laid out "a very clear guideline" on how the plan can be rolled out for the overall workforce, the government will be focusing on the construction sector in particular.

This is because it is a sector where there is a "higher transmission risk" due to the nature of the activity and the mixing of workers across different dormitories, and at their worksites.

He added that the government has been discussing with the industry, which understands the need to put in place certain changes and new measures to make sure that construction work can resume safely in the new Covid-19 environment.

For instance, new measures would be introduced that cover "end to end precautions" from accommodations to the transportation of workers, and down to the work sites.

In addition, Wong said it is important to realise that for the easing of the circuit breaker restrictions, the government is not relaxing "everything" on June 2, and that they are doing so in a careful and calibrated manner.

Top image adapted via ROSLAN RAHMAN/AFP/Getty Images & gov.sg