UAE – The United Arab Emirates state news agency has announced that entry for travelers coming from Uganda and DR Congo has been suspended as part of efforts to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
The measure applies to transit passengers, in addition to passengers who have travelled through these countries in the last 14 days prior to their arrival in UAE. However, Emirati citizens, diplomatic passport holders and official delegations are exempt from the measures.
The decision which was announced by the National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority and the General Civil Aviation Authority will not affect Transit flights from the UAE to the affected countries as well as cargo flights.
“The General Authority of Civil Aviation confirmed that travelers coming from Zambia, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda through other countries are required to have a period of stay in those countries of not less than 14 days in order to be allowed to enter the country, with the continuation of cargo flights between the UAE with the three countries,” the authority said.
Those excluded from the travel ban must adhere to precautionary measures, including undergoing 10-day quarantine, taking a PCR examination at the airport and on days four and eight of entering the country.
Uganda lockdown
On Sunday, Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni introduced new lockdown measures including the closure of schools and the suspension of non-essential travel between districts in an attempt to stem the rise in Covid-19 cases. Public gatherings and worship services were also suspended for a period of 42 days.
Last week, the Democratic Republic of Congo said it was facing the third wave of coronavirus infections, with its epicenter in the capital, Kinshasa, one of Africa’s most populous cities.
Recently, CDC revised the criteria it uses to determine travel health notices in order to better differentiate countries with severe outbreak situations from countries with sustained, but controlled, COVID-19 spread.
This resulted in revised travel advisories for a number of countries as well as travel guidance for vaccinated and unvaccinated travelers.
A total of 62 destinations, including Japan, Canada, Mexico, Italy, France and Germany, dropped from “COVID-19 very high” Level 4 tier to “COVID-19 high” Level 3 tier on the CDC’s travel recommendations list, which rates the risks by country.
While the CDC had advised all travelers to avoid these destinations while they were considered “COVID-19 very high,” it now cautions travelers to make sure they are fully vaccinated before traveling to these regions. Unvaccinated travelers should still avoid nonessential travel to the Level 3 destinations, the agency said
