Kenya has gone for seven weeks of partial lockdown to contain the spread of Covid-19.
Schools, worship places, airports, hotels and restaurants and clubs have all been ordered closed to stop interactions that could exacerbate infections.
Dusk-to-dawn curfew and travel restrictions timelines expire this weekend and the question is, what next for the country?
Health experts argue that the containment measures have largely saved the population. By Friday, the country had registered 781 infections, 45 deaths and 284 recoveries.
Barring the restrictions, it is argued, the numbers would have been unbearably high and the government would not cope. Not with a feeble health system and infrastructure and inadequate medical staff.
Since the first case of Covid-19 was discovered in Wuhan, China, last December, the pandemic has spread and brought the world to a standstill.
Medical science is grappling with solutions but there is no cure in sight yet. The World Health Organisation has since declared that the virus is here to stay.
The import of that is that the world has to find ways of managing and living with it. That is the challenge for everyone.
Cumulatively, the restrictions at the international and national levels have wrought unprecedented misery upon the world.
Economies have tanked and headed for depression worse than the 2008-9 financial crisis. The latest estimates by the International Monetary Fund indicate that the global economy will contract by three per cent this year.
Initially, it had been projected to grow by 2.9 per cent. Kenya’s economy had an initial growth projection of six per cent but is now predicted to shrink by half.
Given the prevailing realities, countries have started to reopen their economies to avert a total collapse. Restrictions are being eased to allow citizens to resume duties and business to spur recovery.
Airlines are announcing resumption of flights in the coming days to stem massive losses incurred when they were grounded for weeks.
Put together, the lockdowns and restrictions cannot hold any longer. Which is not to play down the threat of increased infections in the absence of restrictions.
The government should consider relaxing some of the restrictions while keeping tabs on the potential risks.
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