Malaysia uses Phuket 'sandbox' to reopen Langkawi

[KUALA LUMPUR] Malaysia plans to reopen the tourist haven of Langkawi island as it renews effort to rebuild parts of the economy worst hit by the pandemic.

Langkawi, in the state of Kedah, will open to locals under a travel bubble plan from Sept 16, Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said in a statement on Thursday.

Other destinations will be allowed to operate when the locality's vaccination rate hits 80 per cent, he added.

Malaysia is preparing for life with Covid even as daily cases remain elevated, mirroring Thailand's tourism-reopening plan based on a pilot project in the popular resort island of Phuket.

Covid-19 will be treated as endemic and it is time for Malaysians to learn to live with the virus, Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said at a briefing on Wednesday.

New infections have soared despite the containment measures, hitting a record 24,599 in a single day late last month and turning the country into Southeast Asia's Covid hotspot. The nation added 20,988 cases on Thursday.

Still, the virus' effective reproduction rate, or R-naught, has fallen below one nationwide "for the first time in few months," Mr Ismail Sabri said, as the nation ramps up its vaccination drive.

More than 84 per cent of the adult population has received at least one dose, and 64 per cent have been fully inoculated, according to the health ministry.

Based on projected data, the average vaccination rate among adults in each state is expected to reach 80 per cent by month-end, Mr Ismail Sabri said. "A 100 per cent vaccination rate will be reached by end of October," he added. "Eventually we have to live with Covid-19 as is the case around the world."

BLOOMBERG