Your favourite restaurants in Lagos are about to open for dining! Due to the outbreak of the coronavirus that caused a nationwide lockdown in March due to CoVid-19, restaurants have been closed, and only recently opened for takeout and orders only. However, that is soon about to change as the Lagos State Government has announced a tentative re-opening of a few public spaces – restaurants included.

On August 1st, 2020, The Lagos state governor, Babajide Sanwo – Olu, announced that the number of people allowed in any public gathering has been increased from 20 to 50. This is apparently due to the decline of the cases of the virus found in the state. Markets – both food and non-food- have also had their closing time extended to 5 pm on opening days which remains Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. This makes me a little apprehensive, as I’m not quite sure that’s a good enough reason, but it also means that restaurants can now have sit-in diners, but only at a 50% capacity.

Restaurants can open for in-dining services, from August 14, on the condition that they maintain 50% capacity and obtain a safety compliance certificate through the LSSC.

Public gatherings can now hold with a maximum of 50 persons for meetings, funerals and other social events. pic.twitter.com/4ooQDZUnxR

— Babajide Sanwo-Olu (@jidesanwoolu) August 1, 2020

That’s not the only condition, there’s more.

To ensure the safety of staff and customers alike, all businesses that are re-opening fully, (or partly as the case may be,) are required to obtain a provisional safety compliance certification from the Lagos State Safety Commission (LSSC). The Governor also mentioned that the preventive measures that were already in place must be strictly imposed. These include wearing of masks, physical distancing, checking temperatures etc.

Restaurants will be allowed to have sit-in diners from the 14th of August, 2020 – as long as they comply with these conditions. I have mixed feelings about this piece of information. On one hand, I am excited that we get to go out to our favourite restaurants once again while being aware of the fact that these restaurants have been shut down for a while and have lost a lot of money already. On the other hand, I am of the opinion that this might not a good idea and we should wait until the virus is completely defeated. However, I believe that with strict adherence to these rules put in place by the government, we can stay safe while we enjoy dining out once again.

Now you can finally go on that date you’ve been thinking about!

What do you think? Let us know in the comments section.

Featured image by Official Twitter Account of the Executive Governor

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