The government has provided an additional $570,000 to the country’s 24 provinces to finance quarantine for another week as part of the fight against Covid-19.

According to a letter from the Ministry of Health to Prime Minister Hun Sen, the $570,000 is an additional fund to the more than $8 million the government had disbursed for the provinces at their request.

“These budgets are for those provinces for quarantine from May 9-15,” read to the letter.

After receiving the funds, provinces must use the money to assist more than 50,000 people, it said.

Provinces which have spent the most are Banteay Meanchey, Battambang and Oddar Meanchey. Preah Sihanouk province has 37,000 people in quarantine, while Kampot and Mondulkiri provinces have no one in quarantine centres.

Vit Vathana, the Kampot provincial hall’s head of administration, told The Post that quarantine centres there were empty because most people are recent arrivals and undergoing self-quarantine at home. Those who tested positive for Covid-19 have been hospitalised.

He added that because nobody is at the centres, the provincial administration did not need more funding. In the past, the government had provided the province with funds, so there is money readily available if needed.

Vathana said a total of 638 people had been quarantined at centres in the province, but had now left. A total of 3,440 people had self-quarantined at home, while 20 people had tested positive for Covid-19.

He called on people to follow the guidelines including the “three protections and three don'ts”.