Two more people have died of Covid-19 in Papua New Guinea, taking the death toll to 71.
The two men who died were from Jiwaka province which has 62 confirmed cases overall.
The Controller of the PNG National Pandemic Response, David Manning, receives a shot of the Covid-19 vaccine produced by Astrazeneca. Photo: PNG PM Media
The total number of people confirmed to have been infected by the coronavirus in PNG is 8,984 after another 170 cases were reported in the past 24 hours.
The cases were reported by the Office of the National Pandemic Response Controller, David Manning, who has pleaded with the public to adhere to protective measures including social distancing and mask use.
According to the Controller, all twenty-two provinces in PNG have now recorded Covid-19 cases, but the vast majority have occurred in the National Capital District (NCD) and in Western Province.
The NCD has 3,726 confirmed cases, while Western Province has 2,273.
Meanwhile, East New Britain's provincial administration has initiated a month-long lockdown to contain the spread of Covid-19 in the province.
A circular obtained by The National showed the province had shut its borders after a recent surge in cases.
In the circular, the provincial administrator Wilson Matava stated that the borders of the province were closed from 5 April to 4 May while authorities work to ensure the positive cases did not continue to rise.
In a situation report, the province reported seven new cases on Sunday, with 85 cases still active.
The province said its accumulative total of confirmed cases was 445, with 359 recovered, and two deaths. However the Controller's office has the total at 341.
Matava said although the province was vigilant in managing the first two cases in 2020, "our complacency has allowed this disease to not only enter but also to spread within community clusters and to all sectors".
He said the outbreak had overwhelmed their provincial health system "in a stressful situation where health workers are immediate victims and health institutions are now avenues for further spread".
PNG began its vaccine rollout two weeks ago, with health workers among those prioritised for early access to the AstraZeneca shots.
