Philippines Posts Travel Ban in Pursuit to Prevent Omicron’s Entry
PHILIPPINES – The Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) implemented a travel ban on these countries amid the threats of Omicron.
While many countries are still in a tough fight against the COVID-19 pandemic now, another variant was detected and is currently a variant of concern – the Omicron. South Africa and Hong Kong logged cases of the said variant of coronavirus.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has issued a warning to countries to prevent the entry of B.1.1.529 or recently-named as Omicron. Several nations implemented travel restrictions in pursuit to prevent its entry.
Recently, the Philippines also ordered the temporary closure of borders on some travelers from certain countries in pursuit to prevent the entry of Omicron.
Based on a report on ABS-CBN News, here is a list of the countries included in the travel ban in the Philippines as imposed by the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF):
- South Africa
- Bostwana
- Namibia
- Zimbabwe
- Lesotho
- Eswatini
- Mozambique
- Austria
- Czech Republic
- Hungary
- The Netherlands
- Switzerland
- Belgium
- Italy
According to the report, travelers coming from the afore-mentioned countries won’t be allowed to enter the Philippines regardless of their vaccination status. Only the returning Filipinos would be allowed to enter the country from Red List countries.
With regards to the travel ban on Hong Kong, the government clarified that the decision is not yet final. The vaccination against COVID-19 is ongoing in the country now.
The national government targets to vaccinate at least 70 million people to achieve population protection against the COVID-19. A national vaccination day was pushed to be conducted today, November 29, to December 1. The target is to vaccinate nine (9) million people.
Currently, the giving of the booster shots of COVID-19 has started among the healthcare workers, the senior citizens, and those individuals who have co-morbidities.
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