Mandatory seven-day quarantine for travellers to Suriname
Persons travelling to Suriname will now have to quarantine at approved hotels or guest houses for seven days upon arrival, according to new COVID19 travel protocols issued by the Surinamese government.
Guyana’s Ministry of Public Works, the Canawaima Ferry Service Inc, and the Ministry of Health yesterday made the announcement moments after the new travel protocols, which were instituted with immediate effect, were released by the government.
In a statement, the Public Works Ministry advised that following the revision of COVID-19 protocols and an implemented curfew which is in effect as of yesterday, passengers must have a negative Polymerase Chain Reaction Test (PCR test) result taken within 72 hours of their scheduled time of departure to Suriname. Upon arrival in Suriname, it added, passengers will be required to quarantine for seven days.
Minister of Public Works Juan Edghill, in a video post to the Ministry’s Facebook page, said that there are no exemptions for persons who have been vaccinated. The Ministry of Health said that because there are no exemptions, travellers will also have to quarantine regardless of them having tested negative for the respiratory disease, recovered from COVID-19, or have been vaccinated. A list of approved hotels or guesthouses in Suriname has been released along with their rates for the stay during the quarantine period.
More information about approved hotels can be accessed via the url: https://www.shata.sr/media/25793/shata-18-februari2021-quarantaine-accommodaties-v7.pdf.
Meanwhile, Edghill said that he assumed that the Ministry of Health in Guyana will, at the appropriate time, advise the country about what protocols will be adopted in Guyana as a result of what is taking place.
Suriname’s new measures come amidst fears that Brazil’s failure to manage its explosion of COVID-19 cases, linked to a variant of the virus, could see a spread to neighbouring countries. Guyana has recently recorded a surge in COVID-19 infections and deaths over the last month although it is yet to confirm the presence of more contagious and deadlier variants of the virus here.
Edghill said that the Canawaima ferry, which was expected to travel next Sunday, April 18, will not be making the trip because of the curfew measures which have been implemented by Suriname. Instead, the vessel will travel on Monday, April 19.
The curfew was instituted from Saturday, April 10, 2021 to Friday April 23, 2021. The curfew will last from 6 pm to 5 am on April 10 and April 11; from 8 pm to 5 am daily from Monday, April 12, to Friday, April 16, before a full lockdown from April 16 until 5 am on Monday, April 19; and from 8 pm to 5 am from Monday April 19 to Friday, April 23.
On February 21, the ferry service between Moleson Creek, Corentyne and South Drain, Suriname, resumed after months of closure over the COVID-19 pandemic. The service was operational every Sunday, Wednesday, and Friday and because of serious health concerns, only Guyanese and Surinamese were allowed to utilise the facility, while diplomats resident in Guyana and in Suriname will be facilitated upon request through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of both countries. Edghill yesterday reiterated that these protocols are still in use.