Yunnan province restricts border crossings into China

A Chinese customs officer in protective suit inspects documents of passengers on a Lao Airlines flight from Vientiane following a global outbreak of the novel coronavirus, at Kunming Changshui International Airport in Kunming, Yunnan province, on March 27, 2020. [Photo/Agencies]

Yunnan province is stepping up measures to curb imported COVID-19 cases, with restrictions on the flow of people into China, officials said at a news conference on Monday in Kunming, the provincial capital.

Yunnan's border of more than 4,000 kilometers features 25 ports of entry in border cities and prefectures. Those places are facing a high risk of coronavirus infections brought from neighboring countries that are experiencing increases, said Yang Yang, director of Yunnan's COVID-19 epidemic response leading group command office.

On March 31, the province issued a regulation prohibiting entry via both land and water. It suspended passenger service at 19 ports of entry, allowing only freight.

People entering China from a country adjacent to Yunnan must be quarantined for two weeks at their own expense and undergo coronavirus tests.

The regulation was translated and distributed to the public in Vietnam, Laos and Myanmar.

The number of people entering China through Yunnan continues to decline.

On April 1, the number of residents entering the country (other than those who live at the border) dropped from the previous daily average of 4,680 to 1,283, while the number of border residents dropped sharply from the previous average of 20,049 to 3,687. The total number of arrivals on April 4 was about one-fourth what it was on March 30.

Editor: John Li