Ivory Coast to ease virus restrictions in Abidjan on Friday

• Schools will reopen on May 25, the statement said, adding that the country's borders would remain closed until the end of the month.
• Ivory Coast has so far recorded 1,912 confirmed coronavirus cases of which 24 have been fatal.

ABIDJAN: Ivory Coast will on Friday lift an almost two-month curfew in its main city Abidjan but nightclubs, cinemas and bars will remain closed to fight the coronavirus epidemic.

A statement issued Thursday after a meeting of the national security council, however, said traditional open-air restaurants called 'maquis' would be allowed to reopen on Friday.

Abidjan, a sophisticated city known as the "Paris of West Africa" for its vibrant nightlife and world class restaurants, will, however, remain isolated from the rest of the country.

The greater Abidjan region is home to over five million people -- a fifth of the population of the world's top cocoa grower.

Schools will reopen on May 25, the statement said, adding that the country's borders would remain closed until the end of the month.

Ivory Coast has so far recorded 1,912 confirmed coronavirus cases of which 24 have been fatal.

There have been no confirmed cases in the interior of the country but new infections are reported daily in Abidjan, which accounts for the overwhelming majority of cases.