Factories in Kandal province where at least five per cent of workers test positive for Covid-19 will be temporarily closed, provincial governor Kong Sophorn said in an April 25 Facebook post.

The remark comes after a meeting with representatives of five factories in western Kandal’s Ang Snuol district, where workers had reportedly been directly and indirectly in contact with Covid-19 positive people, most of whom were travelling together.

These factories were Sun Best Garment, Grand Oriental Footwear International, Vanco Industrial, Cam A P I Medical, and Andersen Industries.

Ang Snuol has 116 factories that employ more than 60,000 workers.

Sophorn said: “As a result of the discussion meeting between the [Ang Snuol] District Administration and the representatives of the five factories, we have agreed to take samples of all workers to test for Covid-19 using rapid test [devices] immediately, as they are in the high-risk department and account for 20 per cent of the total number of workers, including security guards, managers, drivers, and workers who travel together.”

Workers found positive for Covid-19 will be treated in their respective factories and tenants of rented units in the same commune who had been directly in contact with them will have to quarantine there as well, the provincial governor said.

He added however, that those living outside of the commune where the factory is located will be “sent to their provinces, districts and communes” for further management.

Kandal Provincial Hall provincial deputy governor and spokesman Nov Peng Chandara told The Post on April 26 that the move was to prevent the spread of Covid-19 and support contact tracing.

“Factories located in lockdown areas are completely closed,” he said. “Only the factories in Ang Snuol [district] are in connection with the outbreak, where we suspect that Covid-19 may be spreading.”

To date, 31 Covid-19 positive people have been found in two factories in Ang Snuol district, according to Peng Chandara.