THE basic reproduction rate (R-naught or R0) of Covid-19 rose to 1.14 yesterday from 1.09 on Tuesday, marking a four-day increase since the weekend, director-general of health Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said.

He posted on Twitter that the R0 nationwide was 1.14 for April 14, climbing from 1.03 on April 10. It had dropped from 1.06 the day before.

A R0 of 1.0 is considered necessary to prevent the spread of new infections. At this rate, one Covid-19 patient could infect only one more person.

The Ministry of Health has been targeting a R0 of less than 1.0, which Malaysia only achieved between March 26 and April 2.

A chart posted by Dr Noor Hisham on Twitter showed that from January 1 to March 25, the R0 was also kept below 1.0, coinciding with the movement control order (MCO) imposed on several states from January 13 until March 4.

This was replaced by the conditional MCO, which differed from similar movement restrictions last year with more relaxed guidelines on business and social activities. 

Malaysia yesterday recorded 1,889 new Covid-19 infections, the highest number of fresh daily cases in 40 days. 

Active cases have also been on the rise and currently stand at 16, 696. – April 15, 2021.