The Border Controls for COVID-19 Prevention in Macau, 2020

DOI: 10.6525/TEB.202011_36(22).0001

Lok I Chan, Aimei Mao^*

2020 Vol.36 NO.22

Correspondence Author： Aimei Mao^*

Abstract：

        Macau is a tiny city with a highly dense population and a high volume of cross-border human flows. Furthermore, Macau borders on mainland China and has a large number of migrant workers. It is essential for Macau to control imported COVID-19 cases. This article described the preventive strategies taken by Macau government in border control. Travelling by air, land and sea between Macau and the outside world was substantially reduced after the controlling measures were complemented quickly and extensively. Although the reported cases of COVID-19 in Macau were mostly imported, the overall infection rate in Macau has remained very low and no community transmissions were detected, showing the effectiveness of the border controls. By comparing with border control measures in Hong Kong and Taiwan, the article further identified the strengths and weaknesses of preventive strategies in Macau to contain imported COVID-19 cases.