Ethiopian, CDC to implement travel pass

Ethiopian Airlines has partnered with the African Centre for Disease Control & Prevention (Africa CDC) for the implementation of the African Union Trusted Travel Pass to make continental travel easier and safer amidst the COVID -19 pandemic.

The trusted travel pass solution will help to validate test and vaccination certificates and verify that they are sufficient for their route and share testing or vaccination certificates with airlines and authorities to facilitate travel.

The solution will also circumvent fraudulent documentation and make air travel more convenient.

It would be recalled that the Travel Pass recently launched by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) enables passengers to create a ‘digital passport’ to verify their pre-travel test or if vaccination meets the requirements of the destination.

Commenting on the implementation of travel pass, Chief Information Officer at Ethiopian Airlines, Mr. Getinet Tadesse, Said, “We are offering new digital opportunities to our passengers so as to fully and safely restore air travel.

“The solution is capable of addressing passengers’ travel needs during COVID -19 pandemic as it helps them validate their test and vaccination documents before departure.”

Director of the Africa CDC, Dr. John Nkengasong, said: “The scale of the challenge presented by Covid-19 demands an unprecedented level of both innovation and cooperation, which is why Ethiopian’s laudable decision to come on board Trusted Travel marks a watershed in the continent’s ongoing fightback against this pandemic’s quest to suppress the Africa’s development ambitions.”