Morocco Moves to Green COVID Alert Level as Omicron Cases Decline Sharply

In a publication entitled "Brief commentary on the epidemiological situation of SARS-CoV-2 infection as of 02/20/2022", Mouad Merabet stressed that the Omicron wave is continuing its rapid decline with a slowdown in viral circulation across the national territory. "The drop in new infections has reached 52%, the drop in the weekly positivity rate is from 7 to 3.5%, while the effective reproduction rate of the virus (Rt) is 0.79," he specified, noting that the improvement concerns all regions of Morocco, even if some provinces are still at the moderate (orange) level, reports La MAP.

According to the official, these figures allow a rapid transition of Morocco from the orange (moderate) level to the low level of SARS-CoV-2 transmission in its Omicron version. He adds that "the downward trend also concerns new infections, with severe Covid cases having recorded a 49.3% drop with 222 new admissions to intensive care and intensive care this week against 300 discharges after clinical improvement".

Regarding weekly deaths, they have also seen a 40% drop, but the emergence of a new variant could undo all these efforts, warns Mouad Merabet, urging citizens to be vigilant and respect preventive measures. "The Omicron wave is not yet closed, another week at the green level is necessary to remain compliant with the transmission level assessment rules," he pointed out.

He added that "the virus is currently spreading weakly in the majority of provinces and prefectures, but no province is experiencing zero transmission. The risk of contamination is there, so the risk of severe Covid is also there and therefore the risk of death is not zero," the official said.