Covid-19: Malaysia, Singapore to implement ‘reciprocal arrangements’ to transfer ill travellers

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia and Singapore will be implementing "reciprocal arrangements" to transfer symptomatic travellers detected at the entry points of each other's country to help curb the spread of Covid-19.

The Malaysia-Singapore Joint Working Group (JWG), in its second meeting held Tuesday (March 24), said it had agreed to continue the existing temperature screening procedures at land and sea checkpoints.

The JWG meeting, which was held via video conference, saw both countries giving updates on the Covid-19 situations in their respective nations.

They also shared existing temperature screening procedures at land and sea check points, and discussed a set of protocols for the transfer of symptomatic travellers detected at entry screening across at these checkpoints between both Malaysia and Singapore.

"The JWG agreed to continue entry screenings by both countries, align temperature screening protocols by applying the same temperature cut-off (>37.5°C) for febrile travellers, and implement reciprocal arrangements for the transfer of symptomatic travellers detected at entry screening back across the land and sea checkpoints.

"The co-chairs tasked the senior officials of the JWG to coordinate the implementation of these initiatives, which would serve as a comprehensive package to enhance joint border screening at both the land and sea borders connecting Malaysia and Singapore," said the JWG in a joint statement on Wednesday (March 25).

The second JWG meeting was co-chaired by Deputy Health Minister Datuk Dr Noor Azmi Ghazali and his counterpart Singapore's Senior Minister of State for Transport and Health Minister Dr Lam Pin Min.

The JWG also acknowledged the recent establishment of the Malaysia-Singapore Special Working Committee (SWC) on Covid-19 to discuss a joint plan to ensure the safe and sustainable movement of people, goods and services between both countries during the implementation of Malaysia’s movement control order (MCO).

"The JWG agreed to continue health discussions specific to these matters separately under the SWC," it said.

The next JWG meeting will be held next month.

Credit by The Star,Wednesday, 25 Mar 2020