Laxity in observing Covid-19 containment measures by citizens and businesses in the country has triggered a sharp rise in infections over the past few months.

According to a survey in Kigali by Rwanda Today, many businesses continue to operate without enforcing safety guidelines — hand washing and social distancing.

Many small businesses and mini-supermarkets operate with empty washing stations while others do not check the temperature of their clients. Some supermarkets and shops allow queues without enforcing social distancing.

Some businesses that had demarcated areas where customers are not al-lowed to go past, but this too is not observed, and in most shops customers now squeeze themselves in a tiny spaces to buy groceries.

Most taxi operators operate without hand sanitisers while some motorcyclists reject mobile money payments insisting that they want to be paid in cash.

The situation is worse in public transport vehicles. For instance, while public buses must carry half the capacity and ensure all passengers wash their hands before boarding but this is not happening.

Handwashing and sanitising is not enforced on stopovers along the routes. For instance, while from Nyabugogo to Kimironko bus terminals there are over 25 stopovers, at which passengers can disembark while others board, only a handful of them are equipped with the hand washing equipment that can facilitate passengers to wash their hands before boarding.

“You can’t now enter any bus terminal here without washing or sanitise your hands, as every terminal has been fitted with a handwashing facility but on the way to the next terminal, there are so many stops, which haven’t yet been fitted with those facilities,” Emmanuel Nsanzimana, a city public transport user told Rwanda Today.

“Most of the time, when passengers enter buses from those stops, they rarely sanitise their hands as it should be,” Mr Nsanzimana added.

While the government has deployed youth volunteers to monitor and enforce covid-19 prevention measures, some say limited supply to water makes it difficult to enforce handwashing.

“There are those who seem to forget to wash their hands as they enter the terminal, but when we ask them to do so, they wash or sanitse without any complications, but when the water is cut off that’s when it becomes a challenge,” a youth volunteer in Kacyiru bus terminal told Rwanda Today.

Most motorists prefer cash to avoid mobile money withdrawal charges while others say clients lie about sending money.

Bizimana Valens, a motorist in Kigali City said he follows the Covid-19 guidelines — sanitising his clients, and masking up but what he doesn’t agree with being paid through mobile money because of heavy charges.

A small shop owner told Rwanda Today that she does not have a handwashing station for clients because she can not afford to buy water everyday from meagre earnings.

Although they have required equipment, management of La Colombe Supermarket Arnod Remera, Kisimenti, doesn’t make use of them. Clients are not reminded to clean their hands and a device to check temperature is kept inside the cashier’s desk, upon request, it was shown to Rwanda Today team.

“We’re not checking temperature now because we’re getting ready to clean the premises this morning , but we always do and we make sure every client cleans their hands,” Ntabana Erneste, chief supervisor at La Colombe Supermarket told Rwanda Today.

A journalist visited supermarkets twice in different days, but none of them are enforcing hand washing and checking body temperature.

As of January 12, the total number of confirmed cases of the virus in the country stood at 9,950. Of these, 9, 674 had recovered, while 2,851 are still active cases.

African Union has already rolled plans to import coronavirus vaccine to enable the continent in the war against the infections disease that brought world economy to its knees.

Several countries have developed protocols with the help of World Health Organisation to turn the tide against the virus.

The government last year developed elaborate health measures that all citizens are expected to observe across the country, with President Paul Kagame warning that if the numbers keep rising the country will be forced to another lockdown.