Belgium on Monday begins to phase out quarantine. This process will take at least four months, at any time it can be suspended or even reversed if the epidemic situation begins to deteriorate again, TASS reported.

Starting Monday, Belgium will also make it mandatory to use face masks in public places. The government acknowledged that it would not be able to supply the population with masks on time, so citizens were instructed to sew masks on their own or use scarves and bandanas to cover their mouth and nose.

The concept of quarantine cancellation was announced on April 25 by the PM, Sophie Wilmes.

The quarantine cancellation process is divided into four phases. The first will be implemented in two stages. Starting May 4, restrictions on the movement of citizens will only be slightly relaxed, in particular, they will be allowed to jog and do sports on the street in two. All shops and enterprises will remain closed, except for stores of fabrics and threads, which must be open so that citizens can make masks.

The second phase of the first phase will begin on May 11, when all other non-food stores will be open. Meetings of family members living separately from each other will be allowed.

The second phase should begin on May 18. From this moment, museums, individual service enterprises can be opened. Private parties with a small number of participants may be allowed, more guests may be allowed at weddings and funerals, but the exact numbers have not yet been named.

The third phase starts no earlier than June 8. Then the opening of restaurants is possible. According to the PM, the opening of cafes and bars will occur later. The prime minister admitted that the Belgians would be allowed to travel around the country at this point. She found it difficult to say when vacation abroad would again be possible.

Mass events, festivals, and concerts will be allowed no earlier than August 31 - in the fourth phase of quarantine cancellation, which has not yet been developed.

The PM noted that the process of quarantine removal will be accompanied by active measures to combat the pandemic. 

So far, people with severe symptoms only test for COVID-19, while the PM promised to bring the number of tests from the current 10 thousand per day to 25 thousand.

Besides, the government will take measures to track the contacts of people with a confirmed diagnosis. 

The government intends to distribute masks only in the uncertain future - one for each resident of the country. Memos on how to sew the mask yourself will be published on the Internet. After each use, these masks will need to be washed with soap in hot water, she noted.

In total, the death toll in Belgium reached 7,844 people, and a total of 49,411 cases of infection were recorded.