Germany‘s number of coronavirus infections have risen for the fifth day in a row and the government are now nervously observing the effects of easing the nationwide lockdown.
The German government’s approach to the outbreak, rolling out mass testing across the country, was widely praised by health organisations and gave it the appearance of succeeding where other states, like Spain and Italy, had failed.
On Thursday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced the country would be reopening social spaces, such as museums and zoos, and that religious communities could be able to hold services again.
Religious services, like the one at this church in Kevelaer, Germany today, have been allowed to resume
Since 26 April, Germany’s rate of infection has seen a steady incline, increasing by 1,639 today, bringing the total number of cases in the country to 160,758, according to the Robert Koch Institut, who have been monitoring the number of coronavirus infections and deaths in Germany.
Today’s rise is the largest seen by the country since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic.
Deaths recorded in the European country yesterday reached 6,288, increasing by a further 200 today, falling just under the 6,500 mark.
The rise in numbers has forced Merkel to announce there may need to be a reinforcement of lockdown measures.
After declaring the loosening of lockdown measures yesterday she said: ‘We must work to make sure we bring the number of new infections down further.
‘If the infection curve becomes steep again, we need to have a warning system to notice it early and be able to act.’
The Chancellor added that measures would be reviewed next week.
After a meeting with state premiers on Thursday, Chancellor Angela Merkel said the relaxing of measures was just a ‘step’, with a more far-reaching plan to be agreed next week.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel attends a press conference after the video conference with the prime ministers of the German states, in Berlin yesterday. Merkel warned that the lockdown measures may need to be reinstated if cases continue to rise
‘It remains absolutely important that we stay disciplined,’ said Merkel, adding that the effects of the new relaxations would be watched carefully.
In order to receive visitors, the institutions will have to meet ‘requirements for hygiene, access control and avoidance of queues’.
Other decisions, such as when to open schools and restaurants and resume Bundesliga football, were pushed back until next week.
Merkel said that ‘clear decisions’ would be made on 6 May on reopening schools and kindergartens, as well as allowing ‘certain sporting endeavours’ to resume.
Next week’s meeting is therefore expected to produce a final decision on whether the Bundesliga can become the first of Europe’s major football leagues to resume play next month.
The top flight league has already presented a blueprint to resume the season behind closed doors, and clubs began testing players on Thursday.
Germany has in the last weeks began to unwind stay-at-home measures aimed at stemming the spread of the coronavirus, with shops allowed to receive customers again since last week.
Restrictions were relaxed after the infection rate fell under 1.0 – meaning each person is infecting less than one other – as opposed to each infecting up five or six people.
With a relatively low death rate of four per cent, Germany has been hailed for its success so far in preventing its health services from being overwhelmed.
As the situation improves, voices are now growing louder within Europe’s biggest economy for the government to move faster on lifting the restrictions that have seriously crippled the economy.
The shutdown lasting more than a month has sunk the economy into a recession, which the government estimates will reach 6.3 per cent for the full year.
The ranks of jobless people have also swelled significantly, reaching 2.6 million in April from 2.3 million in March.
Late Wednesday, authorities also suffered a setback on their lockdown plans after the constitutional court a ban on religious services amounted to ‘a serious infringement of religious freedom’.
But like other countries seeking a way out of their lockdowns, Merkel is treading the fine line between allowing the economy to reboot while preventing a new wave of infections.
On Thursday, the chancellor insisted that ‘caution is the order of the day’.