Singapore to ease restrictions on some businesses, schools

Singapore will allow some schools and workplaces to resume operations in the next couple of weeks as the country eases restrictions to improve supply chains and the provision of essential services, senior officials told reporters on Saturday.
Students sitting for national exams and those at some higher-education campuses will be allowed to return to school in small batches from May 19, Minister for National Development Lawrence Wong said. Priority will be given to pupils who require school facilities to do coursework or need additional teaching support.
Some businesses that play a crucial role in the country’s supply chains will be allowed to resume operations from May 12, Health Minister Gan Kim Yong said at the press conference. These include food manufacturers, home-cooking businesses, and retail outlets for deliveries and takeaways, and laundry and hairdressing services, the Ministry of Health said in an e-mailed statement. Companies that restart must ensure workers maintain a safe distance from each other.
Chinese traditional medicine stores will be allowed to provide some acupuncture services from May 5 and will be able to sell some retail products if a registered practitioner deems it to be essential. At present, consultations and dispensing of herbal remedies is permitted.
About 85% of Singapore’s workforce is now working at home after the city-state implemented "circuit-breaker” measures including the closure of schools and most workplaces in early April.
The fight against infections remains challenging and ministries are still studying what measures will be rolled out in June, Wong said.
Restrictions on the movement of foreign workers at domitories will be extended to June 1 as the country continues to battle a spike in coronavirus cases, the Ministry of Health statement said. There were an additional 932 infections confirmed on Friday, the vast majority of whom were work-permit holders residing in foreign-worker dormitories.