COVIDSafe practices during Ramadan & Eid

Guidance for COVIDSafe practices during Ramadan and Eid

This document provides general public health advice for COVIDSafe celebrations during Ramadan and Eid.

COVIDSafe principles

Venue restrictions

Depending on where gatherings for Ramadan or Eid celebrations are held, different restrictions will apply. Venues must follow the restrictions in the Restricted Activity Directions which includes preparing a COVIDSafe Plan.

Gatherings for Ramadan or Eid in which the number of attendees exceeds the number allowed under the venue’s density quotient must be considered under the Public Events Framework.

Lower risk events (Tier 3) may proceed without government approval if they are registered and have a COVIDSafe Event Checklist. Any event that has more than 5000 participants and exceeds the capacity limit for the venue must apply for and receive Victorian Government approval.

Infection prevention

Important things to remember:

• let people know that they must not attend gatherings at mosques or other venues if they are unwell
• encourage hand hygiene before entering and leaving any area
• ensure hand sanitiser is available for attendees
• if there is large number of people, gather outdoors if possible
• enhance airflow of indoor spaces by opening doors and windows
• ensure that density quotients are adhered to as per the requirements of the venue – this is one person per two square metres for mosques and most other venues (for example, if an outdoor space is 8 metres long and 1 metre wide, its total area is 8 square metres, so no more than 4 people would be permitted in the space at a time)
• encourage physical distancing of 1.5 metres between non-household members
• use separate entry and exit points for attendees entering and exiting the mosque or venue
• encourage families and household members to sit together as much as possible
• clean and disinfect high-touchpoint surfaces regularly – at least twice daily or immediately if groups are moving in and out of an area or when visibly soiled.

It is recommended that attendees wear a face mask if physical distancing of 1.5 metres cannot be maintained.

Record keeping

All venues must use the free Victorian Government QR Code Service or the  Victorian Government Application Programming Interface-linked digital system record keeping (venues will have a 28-day compliance amnesty to 23 April 2021).

Food and drink service for Iftar and Eid celebrations

All venues serving food must comply with the obligations stated in the Restricted Activity Directions under ‘Food and drink facilities’.

Buffet-style food service is permitted.  However, due to the increased risk of transmission when groups of people congregate together for shared food and meals, it is recommended that extra precautions are taken if food is served outside of a restaurant setting.

Things to remember:

• ensure that density quotients and record keeping requirements are adhered to, this is one person per two square metres for most venues
• encourage hand hygiene before entering and leaving an area where attendees collect food and drinks
• promote COVIDSafe queueing and discourage crowding around areas where attendees collect food and drinks
• designate specific people to serve food and drinks
• do not touch food directly – use utensils such as serving spoons or tongs to serve food
• clean and disinfect high-touchpoint surfaces regularly, including implements used for serving food and drinks (for example, clean tables with disinfectant after each person dines)
• encourage families and household members to sit together as much as possible.

It is recommended that attendees wear a face mask if physical distancing of 1.5 metres cannot be maintained.

Prayers during Ramadan and Eid

People gathering for religious practices must follow the requirements stated in the Restricted Activity Directions under ‘Places of worship’. This includes the performance of Maghrib prayers, Tarawih and Eid prayers.

The performance of Itikaf in a mosque is not recommended at this time. It is recommended that Itikaf and Surh occurs at home this year.

The following principles apply for gatherings for prayers during Ramadan and Eid:

• mosques must apply the two square metre rule and use the free Victorian Government QR Code Serviceor the Victorian Government Application Programming Interface-linked digital system for record keeping
• people must not attend if unwell
• it is recommended that congregants and imams wear a face mask if physical distancing of 1.5 metres cannot be maintained during prayers
• hand sanitisation should be available
• separate entry and exit points should be used for people entering and exiting the mosque
• there must be no sharing of food, drink, crockery, utensils, vessels or other equipment during the performance of prayers
• congregants should bring their own Qur’an, tasbih and prayer mat to prayer
• consider organising prayers in an outdoor location, where possible
• if prayers are indoors, maximise ventilation by opening windows and doors
• encourage families and household members to sit together as much as possible
• imams should ensure that headsets or microphones are cleaned between prayers.