Published on: 04/30/2022 – 08:52 Beijing will strengthen measures to fight against Covid-19 by making new tests compulsory, authorities in the Chinese capital announced on Saturday. Beijing is doing everything it can to avoid suffering the same fate as Shanghai – confined for a month – as the Covid-19 epidemic soars in China due to the Omicron variant. Latest health measure to date: the authorities of the Chinese capital announced on Saturday April 30 that they were going to make new tests compulsory. This decision comes on the first day of a long weekend on the occasion of the work. The Chinese generally take the opportunity to travel around the country but this year the worst outbreak of cases since the beginning of 2020 forced many to stay at home. Faced with the highly contagious Omicron variant, the Chinese authorities have reinforced their zero Covid policy, in carrying out massive screenings and confinements as soon as the first cases appear. These strict measures have led to a slowdown in the country’s economy and growing frustration among the population.>> To read: Covid-19: China faces the dilemma of confinement in BeijingBeijing announced on Saturday that at the end of these five public holidays, access to public spaces will be further limited. From May 5, a negative Covid test carried out within the past week will be mandatory to enter “many public places and to take public transport “, according to an announcement made on the capital’s WeChat account. For activities such as sporting events and group travel, participants will also be required to present a negative Covid test carried out within the last 48 hours, as well as proof that they have been fully vaccinated. China has recorded more than 10,700 new positive cases across the country, almost all of them in Shanghai, the economic capital. The metropolis in the east of the country, confined for almost a month, reported more than 10,100 cases on Saturday in the past 24 hours, almost half of the daily cases that were recorded in early April. In Beijing , the number of cases rose to 54, according to the National Health Commission. Covid tests will be free for residents from Tuesday, state media said. With AFP