Maintain two-metre distance at cash counters: Ministry of Commerce and Industry

Customers who want to buy their goods at shopping centres in Oman must maintain a distance of two metres from each other while paying for their items at the cash counter to avoid the spread of COVID-19, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry has said.

These measures must be taken in accordance with the requirements for social distancing. In a statement, the MoCI “made it clear that under these measures, consumers would enter shopping centres in batches, in such a way that there is a safe distance of two metres between one consumer and the other at payment counters. Shopping trolleys and surfaces should be sanitised and consumers must be provided with sanitisers. Commercial centres or shops which ignore these guidelines would have to face legal actions.

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry said that shops would need to abide by these rules, which were announced in collaboration with the Ministry of Health. “These measures are meant for regulating and organising the process of shopping for consumers, in order to curb the spread of the coronavirus.”

“Consumers should abide by these instructions without fail for their safety, to prevent transmission of the pandemic,” the statement explained. “Only one person from a family should come to these places for shopping and they should avoid peak hours, which is normally between 7pm and 10pm. Consumers are also urged to shop through electronic applications.”