International travel: Government told to change ‘high-risk list’ criteria

It has been an exhausting five days or so for the tourism industry. The resumption of international travel was meant to be an almighty boost for the economic pillar, but instead, the reopening of South Africa’s borders has caused chaos. Official tourist bodies in South Africa are now imploring the government to change their rules for ‘high-risk countries’.

International travel laws: High-risk list ‘should change its criteria’

Tourism Business Council (TBCSA) CEO Tshifhiwa Tshivhengwa says the 60-strong high-risk list – which forbids leisure travellers from visiting South Africa due to high infection rates – is hampering the recovery of the tourism sector. Speaking to CapeTalk on Monday, he listed three things that need to be addressed immediately.

• Countries that bring in the highest number of tourists to SA ‘should be reconsidered’ on the high-risk list.
• The requirement for all travellers to produce a negative COVID-19 test on arrival makes the high-risk list ‘redundant’.
• The government suspension of visa-free travel for 11 countries now requires ‘a huge PR campaign to clarify the matter’.

Government’s muddled messaging ‘causing international mayhem’

Tshivhengwa has rallied against the constricting rules that have rubbed major airlines and international powerhouses up the wrong way since Thursday. Emirates briefly suspended flights to SA over the COVID-19 testing guidelines, whereas a contingent of German travellers was told their visa-free status had expired. The CEO wants consistency from the tourism ministry:

“One of the things that we have been saying is that the mechanism or the metrics that have been used to determine the list of the high-risk countries needs to be explained to the industry.”

“We believed that the metrics may not be fully complete in terms of taking into consideration other factors, including how many people travel to South Africa from those countries.“

If you test someone 72 hours before they depart and they are negative, why should it matter which country they come from? Whether it is high-risk or low-risk, it shouldn’t matter because everyone is tested.“

Tshifhiwa Tshivhengwa on international travel laws and the high-risk list