The Ministry of Health designated Hun Sen Champuvorn High School on Wednesday as a health check facility for all travellers entering Cambodia.

The high school, which has been fitted with 200 beds, is located in the capital’s Chau commune in Por Sen Chey district, near the Phnom Penh International Airport.

Since May 20, the government has required all passengers entering the country to be taken to waiting areas for health checks.

Samples taken from them are to be tested for Covid-19 at the Institut Pasteur du Cambodge before they are quarantined either at home, a hotel, or a location chosen by the authorities.

Previously, passengers entering Cambodia were taken to the Cambodian Air Force Headquarters and the Chak Angre Krom Health Centre, which have 200 beds each.

Ministry secretary of state York Sambath told Fresh News on Wednesday that the high school was converted into a health facility to prepare for passengers scheduled to arrive on six incoming flights from China and South Korea on Wednesday.

Some of the passengers were Cambodian migrant workers from South Korea.

“Cambodian passengers are not required to pay a fee for the health services, while foreigners are required to pay for accommodation and other expenses when they are placed in hotels for isolation,” she said.

She said the government started allowing passengers from the US, Iran, Spain, France and Italy to enter Cambodia on May 20, and as of Tuesday, more than 2,000 foreigners and Cambodians had arrived at the Phnom Penh International Airport.

Sambath could not be reached for comment on Wednesday while ministry spokeswoman Or Vandine confirmed that she had received the information regarding passengers from abroad.

State Secretariat of Civil Aviation (SSCA) spokesman Sin Chansereyvutha said over the past few days, six or seven planes a day had flown into Cambodia, but he was unsure of their nationalities.

The ministry recently said foreign passengers allowed to enter Cambodia must have letters confirming that they had tested negative for Covid-19 and hold health insurance coverage of at least $50,000.

All passengers must be admitted to waiting centres to be tested for Covid-19 and wait for their results from Institut Pasteur du Cambodge.

The ministry said if a passenger tested positive for Covid-19, all others on the flight must be quarantined at locations mandated by the inter-ministerial committee on Covid-19 Prevention and Control.

If they test negative for Covid-19, they will be allowed to quarantine at home, it said.