COVID-19 pandemic in Paraguay

• 7 March: the first case was confirmed in Asunción. The patient is a 32-year-old man who arrived from Guayaquil, Ecuador.[13][14]
• 10 March: Paraguay suspended public school sessions and large-scale public and private events for 15 days.[15][16]
• 13 March: Paraguay suspended flights coming from Europe.[17]
• 15 March: Paraguay confirmed partial closures of its borders, restricted crowds and imposed a night time curfew.[18]
• 20 March: Paraguay confirmed the first death in the country due to coronavirus, and extended a previously announced quarantine through 12 April, and called for a social isolation policy (total lockdown). Public movement is restricted to buying food, medicine and other essential items.[19]

• 8 April: Nationwide quarantine (total lockdown) extended through April 19.[20]
• 17 April: Nationwide quarantine (total lockdown) extended through April 26.
• 20 April: For the first time in 29 days, no new cases were found.[21]
• 24 April: Nationwide quarantine (total lockdown) extended through May 3. Paraguay will implement from May 4 the so-called “Smart/Intelligent Quarantine”, gradual return to work and social activities with social distancing and hygiene measures. However, The government decided to maintain the closure of borders and implement distance education classes until December.[22]

• 4 May: Starts the Phase 1 of the "Smart/Intelligent" Quarantine.[23][7]
• 25 May: Starts the Phase 2 of the "Smart/Intelligent" Quarantine.

• 9 Jun: The Paraguayan government has announced the total closure of the city of San Roque González de Santa Cruz for a period of 15 days, starting on 9 June, and the city will return to the total lockdown phase.[24]
• 15 Jun: Starts the Phase 3 of the "Smart/Intelligent" Quarantine, with the exception of the Paraguarí and Concepción Departments, which will remain in Phase 2, with the local government controlling circulation at main access points to those Departments for 14 days.[25]
• 25 Jun: Phase 3 (Intelligent Quarantine) extended through July 19. The city of San Roque González de Santa Cruz return to Phase 2.
• 27 Jun: Community cases outnumber shelter cases for the first time, already reaching 56% of total confirmed cases.

• 13 July: Paraguarí and Concepción Departments starts the Phase 3 of the "Smart/Intelligent" Quarantine.
• 17 July: Paraguay has passed 100,000 tests (PCR)
• 20 July: Starts the Phase 4 of the "Smart/Intelligent" Quarantine, with the exception of Asunción (D.C), Central and Alto Paraná Departments.
• 29 July: Due to the increase in cases, the department of Alto Paraná returned to lockdown on July 29 for two weeks, with some authorizations of Phase 1 and commerce enabled between 5:00am to 5:00pm.[26]

• 8 August: Phase 3 (Intelligent Quarantine) extended through August 30 in Asunción and Central department.[27]
• 14 August: Lockdown extended through August 23 in Alto Paraná department.
• 15 August: Phase 4 (Intelligent Quarantine) extended through August 30 in the rest of the country.
• 23 August: Asunción and Central department enter a Social Quarantine (Phase 3 with more restrictions, especially in the social sphere). Lockdown extended through September 6 in Alto Paraná department, with some relaxations.
• 30 August: Phase 4 (Intelligent Quarantine) extended through September 6 in the rest of the country. Boquerón department and the city of Carmelo Peralta (in Alto Paraguay department) come back to Phase 3.

• 3 September: Quarantine extended until September 20.
• 20 September: Quarantine extended until October 4.

• 5 October: Starts the "new normality".

On 10 March 2020, the Paraguayan government suspended classes and all activities that involve groups of people, as well as public and private events, with the goal of avoiding the spread of the virus, in accordance with Decree no. 3442/2020.[2]

Other preventive measures have been adopted as time has gone by, such as restrictions on commerce and movement, suspends flights, closure of borders, restricting entry of foreigners, curfews, and strengthening controls to ensure compliance with the measures.[3]

On 20 March 2020, the first death and the first case of community transmission were confirmed. The government declared a total quarantine (lockdown) until 3 May, with free movement restricted completely. Public movement was restricted to buying food, medicine and other essential items.[4][5][6]

The city of San Roque González de Santacruz (department of Paraguarí) returned to lockdown on June 9 through June 24, due to the uncontrolled increase in the number of contaminations.

Paraguay implemented from May 4 the so-called “Intelligent/Smart” Quarantine, gradual return to work and social activities with social distancing and hygiene measures in 4 phases. However, The government decided to maintain the closure of borders, implement distance education classes, and the night-time curfew indefinitely.[7]

• Phase 1: consists of the reopening of industries, small businesses with up to 3 people inside, and all delivery services. Outdoor individual physical activity, such as walking, can occur within 500 meters of a person's home. Access to public and private parks for walking/running trails only is permitted but observing the following: From 5:00am to 10:00am access for people, age 65 and older. From 10:30am to 8:00pm access for people between the ages of 10 and 64. The use of common areas such as playgrounds, exercise machines, courts and benches are not allowed. Vehicle traffic restriction by license plate.
• Phase 2 consists of the reopening of corporate buildings with up to 50% of the workforce present and under a rotation schedule. This includes, civil construction, shopping centres and medium-sized businesses, hairdressers (up to 30 minutes per appointment), religious services (such as weddings and baptisms) with no more than ten people present, and moving services. This is to be carried out in compliance with strict health and safety measures, including the washing of hands coming in and out of venues/sites, mandatory physical distancing and the wearing of face masks at all times.
• Phase 3: consists of the limited reopening of restaurants, religious activities in groups of up to 20 persons, higher school (only exams, thesis presentation, practical and laboratory classes; not include classroom classes), indoor gyms by appointment only, outdoor exercise for up to two people, drive-in cinema and other cultural activities with social distancing measures. This also includes individual physical activity in sports clubs and private parks.
• Phase 4: consists of opening the hotel and cultural sector under a strict health protocol. Religious activities in groups of up to 50 persons (a distance of two meters between each person and the registration of participants), in addition to concerts / music festivals, suitable cinemas and other activities in the cultural sector. Social events are allowed up to 20 people and private social gatherings (preferably family) of up to 10 people. As for sports activities, up to 4 people are allowed in any non-contact sport.[24]

In Phase 1 and 2, the ban on all non-essential movement was in place from 9pm to 5am. In Phase 3 and 4, the ban on all non-essential movement is in place from 11pm to 5am (Sundays to Thursdays) and from 12am to 5am (Friday to Saturday).

Due to the increase in cases, the department of Alto Paraná returned to lockdown on July 29 for three weeks, with some authorizations of Phase 1 and commerce enabled between 5:00am to 5:00pm (called Phase 0,5).[26] On August 24, the lockdown extended through September 20 in Alto Paraná department, with some relataxions, for example, the commerce enabled until 8pm. Since September 21, this department enter a Social Quarantine.

On August 23, Asunción and Central department enter a Social Quarantine (Phase 3 with more restrictions, especially in the social sphere,for example, curfew between 8pm to 5am, prohibition of alcohol sales at night, long-distance trips suspended on weekends, individual physical activity, etc.).

On August 31, Boquerón department and the city of Carmelo Peralta (in Alto Paraguay department) come back to Phase 3.

On September 13, Caaguazú department and Concepción department enter a Social Quarantine.

As announced on October 2 by the Minister of Health, the phases of Intelligent Quarantine in the country are finalized, to advance to a kind of new normal known as the "covid way of living", due to the plateau reached in the contagions. Eventually, specific exceptions could be raised by zones or by a particular economic sector, if the circumstances require it, as stated by the same.

From October 5, interdepartmental circulation will be allowed without restrictions, and free circulation every day between 05:00 am and 00:00 am. The operation of hotels, and social and cultural events is allowed, with a restriction of up to 50 people, among others.

Since October 15, the opening of borders with Brazil is available. Likewise, since October 21, the opening of airports with commercial flights is available. Those passengers who stay more than 7 days must comply with mandatory quarantine.

At the end of October, there was a decline in confirmed COVID-19 cases, from more than 5,000 weekly cases during the peak (plateau) to below 3,000 weekly cases. However, a month of continuous decline, towards the end of November and the beginning of December the cases increased again, again reaching the average number of cases during the peak between September and October, for which the National Government once again applied some restrictions. As stated by the Director of the Health Surveillance, the pandemic in Paraguay is still on a "plateau" and it is most likely that it will continue like this for the remainder of 2020 and even early 2021.

Paraguay's economy will contract 2.5% until 5% in 2020 due to the halt in economic activities brought on by social isolation measures to contain the coronavirus. The projection is a stark turnaround from the Central Bank of Paraguay in December 2019 estimate of 4.1% growth in the year. The bank's new estimate also goes further than the International Monetary Fund, which projected in mid-April a contraction of 1.0%.

But the government of President Mario Abdo Benítez has been heavily criticised for failing to support people left without income during the total quarantine. Sixty-five per cent of Paraguay's workers earn their living in the informal economy and have no access to benefits during the coronavirus crisis.

As social distancing entered the public lexicon, emergency management leaders encouraged the cancellation of large gatherings to slow the rate of infection, these are a few cancelled or postponed events:

this information is per: (as of December 15)

• In Shelters (imported cases): 2%
• Locals (out of shelters, communitary cases): 98%
• Men: 50%
• Women: 50%
• Tests (PCR-): 507,794
• Hospitalized cases: 834 (172 in UTI)