KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 10 — The basic reproduction number (R-nought or R0) of Covid-19 infections in Malaysia was now under 1.0, said Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah.

In a press conference, he said that the R0 had been 1.1 before today, but has been lowered by the implementation of the conditional movement control order (CMCO).

"Yesterday (November 9), we identified 972 confirmed Covid-19 cases when we predicted 977 new cases. Today, we confirmed 869 new cases where we predicted 975,” he said.

A disease’s R0 must be below 1.0 in order for it to be suppressed.

"Maybe in a week or two, the R0 will drop all the way to 0.5 if things continue to go as they are. We will see,” he said.

Yesterday, Dr Noor Hisham said the chain of Covid-19 infections in Malaysia could be broken if all Malaysians stayed at home as much as possible for the next two weeks.

The CMCO was first announced on October 13, for Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Sabah, after a spike in Covid-19 cases following the Sabah state elections. Since then the CMCO has been extended to Dec 6, and now encompasses all peninsular states except Perlis, Pahang and Kelantan.