It's possible that the pandemic may be lowered to endemic status soon.

With the high vaccination rate, the Health Ministry sees light at the end of the tunnel after more than a year of fighting Covid-19 as a global pandemic, and expects that the Kingdom may proceed to an endemic state to enter the new normal.

“This is a favorable omen for the pandemic moving forward to endemic,” Ministry spokeswoman Hok Kimcheng told Khmer Times yesterday. We can put an end to the epidemic, or at the very least decrease the horror of the pandemic, if we act together - governments and citizens.”

“The fact that practically everyone has been vaccinated is a positive indicator. The immune system of those who have been vaccinated is strong enough to combat the Covid-19 virus. The virus is unavoidable, and the vaccination alone won't help, but the virus won't be able to defeat us if we take precautions,” he said.

“I want people to remember that it has been our responsibility to stay safe since the beginning of the epidemic, and it is each citizen's responsibility to protect themselves from the Covid-19 virus,” Kimcheng stated. “I hope that in these two years, people have learned enough. As a result, we can get on with our lives and live with the virus.”

“The ministry is coordinating with relevant ministries to determine the length of the tourist quarantine and how it will be implemented. We're doing everything we can to help you all adjust to the new normal,” he continued.

“Covid-19 is about us and it's waiting for the chance to get in to you,” Kep provincial governor Som Piseth told Khmer Times yesterday. Before the virus "grabs on to you," he warned, it needs to be controlled.

“The Covid-19 testing procedure has changed, but the protection measures have not. Wearing a mask, social distancing, avoiding crowded locations, and washing hands – all the three Do's and three Don'ts – will help you cope,” he stated.