On the afternoon of November 30, Guangzhou held a COVID-19 Prevention and Control Press Conference to brief the latest epidemic situation in the city.

On November 29, Guangzhou reported 6,995 locally acquired COVID-19 cases, among which 68 were found in communities. Meantime, 8,736 people were discharged from (makeshift) hospitals, among the total 41,405 discharged since the outbreak of this round of epidemic. Haizhu District reported 6,183 new infections.

Zhang Yi, Deputy Director General of the Guangzhou Health Commission, introduced that all districts in Guangzhou are rolling out measures as follows in accordance with the COVID-19 Response Plan (Version No. 9) issued by the Joint Prevention and Control Mechanism of the State Council and the requirements of the twenty measures for optimizing COVID-19 response.

1. A science-based and targeted approach shall be adopted in designating high-risk areas. In principle, the residences and workplaces of the infected people and venues with high transmission risks will be designated as high-risk areas, confined to specific blocks or buildings and shall not be expanded at discretion. Lockdown measures shall be lifted in areas once conditions permit. It is required to move fast to implement or lift lockdowns, so as to minimize the inconvenience caused to the residents.

2. Epidemiological investigation shall be conducted accurately. Epidemiological investigation shall be carried out with a science-based and targeted approach. Close contacts shall be determined in a timely and accurate manner. The screening scope of close contacts shall not be expanded arbitrarily, and time and space shall not be used as the criteria for determining close contacts.

3. Quarantine measures for close contacts shall be optimized. Close contacts shall be put under centralized quarantine in principle. Those who have conditions for home quarantine can practice relevant measures at home instead.

4. PCR testing shall be conducted in a science-based manner. PCR testing shall be performed only among people working in high-risk positions or in key groups. Expanding test coverage and conducting district-wide testing are forbidden.

5. Efforts shall be made to accelerate COVID-19 vaccination. All residents shall be encouraged to get vaccinated. Governments shall take the lead in collaboration with all departments and make sure management measures are implemented at local levels. A targeted approach and refined management shall be adopted in investigating the current situation to optimize services and provide facilitation. Further efforts shall be made in mobilizing residents with multi-pronged approaches and strengthening supervision, with a particular focus on the elderly vaccination.

Zhang Zhoubin, Party Secretary and Spokesperson of the Guangzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said that at present, on top of resolutely handling the local epidemic situation in all districts, it is more important for Guangzhou to guard the first line of defense, that is the routine epidemic response. According to the current situation and the characteristics of virus transmission, it is necessary to carry out work earlier, more timely and more accurately in each important link of COVID-19 response.

"Earlier" is to focus more on key industries and key personnel. It is necessary to introduce collective health codes, further strengthen the health monitoring and management of employees, and detect potential infections earlier with standardized PCR testing.

"More timely" means to strengthen the management of key venues, such as venue code scanning, so that local CDCs can identify close contacts more quickly and timely.

"More accurately" means to adopt a science-based and targeted approach in designating risk areas to minimize the inconvenience caused to residents in their work and life.

Zhang Zhoubin stressed that "the above-mentioned optimized measures are introduced to make COVID-19 response more science-based, accurate and efficient, so that we can win this uphill battle with routine prevention measures". All residents will still need to take the responsibility for personal health and safety, get PCR tests as required and cooperate with routine prevention measures like scanning venue codes and getting temperature checked when entering public venues.

Huang Xingyao, Deputy Director General of Guangzhou Municipal Industry and Information Technology Bureau, said that in the current outbreak, the bureau has carried out the following work to stabilize the supply chain and support enterprises.

First, steering industrial enterprises toward effective COVID-19 prevention and control. The bureau has established a task force for the COVID-19 prevention and control of industrial enterprises and industrial parks in Guangzhou, which has helped a number of enterprises solve the shortage of anti-epidemic supplies and daily necessities. The bureau has intensified the investigation in the production of anti-epidemic supply producers to ensure the sufficient provision, smooth production, and prompt allocation of anti-epidemic supplies in critical times.

Second, going all out to ensure a stable and unblocked supply chain for industrial enterprises. The bureau has activated the taskforce-based emergency work mechanism for supply chain security and promptly alleviated difficulties for enterprises. For example, the bureau has assisted GAC Group, Dongfeng Nissan, and their SME suppliers in transportation as well as work and production resumption.

Third, providing business support and enhancing enterprises' confidence. The bureau has provided over 1,000 key industrial and information technology enterprises with one-on-one tailored services including policy interpretation and door-to-door services. The practice has helped enterprises address problems in work resumption, warehousing, and transportation.

Huang hoped that enterprises can be more confident about their development in Guangzhou. In the near future, the bureau will continue to give play to the supply chain security task force in overall coordination and increase efforts in securing the supply and stabilizing the prices of key raw materials to ensure efficient overall coordination between COVID-19 response and business operations.

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