Rwanda cancels national prayer breakfast 2021 amid COVID-19 restrictions

The annual national prayer breakfast in Rwanda that was scheduled to take place later in January was canceled as the country is amid a spike in infections and deaths from the coronavirus pandemic, according to a report by Anadolu Agency.

The breakfast that was held in 1995 for the first time is an event that brings together the top leaders of the country to celebrate Rwanda's achievements, as mentioned on the website of The New Times local.

The Rwanda Leaders Fellowship (RLF) that reportedly organizes the event has canceled the breakfast since the government imposed restrictions since Monday to curb the spread of COVID-19.

Adding to the cancelation, Antoine Rutayisire, the ex-chairman of RLF said, "after a realistic analysis of the surge in Covid-19 cases in the country, we have canceled the annual event for this year".

Seeing the new measures that allow a 30% operational capacity in the offices of both public and private institutions, the event has been called off for 2021, it reported.

Quoting a Cabinet statement, it read, "travel will only be permitted for medical reasons and essential services... Vehicles transporting goods will continue to function with no more than two people on board."

However, the health officials in the country have confirmed that over 105 COVID-19-related deaths have been noted while over 8,848 infections are recorded in the country. The restrictions in Rwanda are followed from Monday after observing rapid increase in COVID-19 deaths.