Timor-Leste recorded 39 new COVID-19 infections on Sunday, of which 64% were unvaccinated people. That was down from 269 new cases 14 days ago – during a month-long period of triple digit daily new cases.

“Don’t’ just stay home if you feel sick. People need to access medical help to find out why they are sick so they can get treated,” Timor-Leste’s Director of General Health Services Odete da Silva Viegas told a press conference on Saturday.

Timor-Leste has managed the coronavirus pandemic better than many other nations due to strict lockdowns and a strong vaccine campaign .

But an outbreak of the highly infectious Delta variant over the past two months has pushed infections to a level not seen since the pandemic started in March 2020.

As of Monday, 55.4 per cent of adults in Timor-Leste have received one COVID-19 vaccine and 32.5% are fully vaccinated, according to official data.