China reduces number of people crossing its borders by 90%

The number of people crossing Chinese borders has been cut by 90 percent as part of Beijing’s efforts to contain the spread of the coronavirus, an official said on Monday. Liu Haitao of the National Immigration Administration said the number of cases was still on the rise in the countries along China’s borders.

China was working to limit all non-essential crossings, but it remained a huge challenge to control the large number of mountain passes, ferries and roads along the country’s long border, the official said.

A total of 108 new coronavirus cases were reported in mainland China on Sunday, up from 99 a day earlier and marking the highest number of cases since 143 infections were reported on March 5, Reuters reports.