Malaysia’s Minister of Health, Khairy Jamaluddin, said on 3 February that they may be recommending lifting some of the restrictions as well as opening up Malaysia’s borders, with the country’s population close to achieving their desired vaccination rates and clinical results.
According to The Vibes, Khairy said that if more people get the vaccination booster shot and the number of children receiving their shots reaches a certain percentage, the target can be achieved sooner.
However, he stopped short of mentioning the specific percentage that has to be met.
He said that he has an idea in his mind that he doesn’t want to inform of just yet, but “as far as the MOH is concerned, we are almost there”.
Khairy was speaking at a press conference for the launch of the vaccination campaign for children, and he said that his ministry will be submitting recommendations to the Ministerial Quartet for further reopening.
He urged those who are reluctant to get their booster shots to do so, saying that he needs their cooperation as the ministry intends to propose lifting restrictions on the borders along with many other things.
Malaysia’s MOH will also be announcing some changes to their isolation and quarantine rules soon.
However, they will evaluate the impact of the Chinese New Year celebrations before making the announcements.