WHO wary as airspace opens

AS AFRICAN countries begin to reopen borders and air spaces, the World Health Organisation (WHO) says it is crucial that governments take effective measures to mitigate the risk of a surge in infections due to the resumption of commercial flights and airport operations.

It said many African governments acted swiftly, implementing confinement and travel restrictions in the early days of the pandemic.

In the WHO African region, 36 countries closed their borders to international travel, eight suspended flights from countries with high Covid-19 transmission and others had partial or no restrictions. So far Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Tanzania and Zambia have resumed commercial flights, the WHO said.

The 15-member Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) is expected to open their airspace on July 21.

While open borders are vital for the free flow of goods and people, initial analysis by the WHO found that lockdowns along with public health measures reduced the spread of Covid-19.

Even with border restrictions, imported cases have sometimes brought back Covid-19 to countries that had not reported cases for a length of time.

For example, Seychelles had not had a locally transmitted case since April 6 but in the past week 66 new cases, all crew members of an international fishing vessel, have been recorded.

“Air travel is vital to the economic health of countries,” WHO regional director for Africa, Matshidiso Moeti, said.

“But as we take to the skies again, we cannot let our guard down. Our new normal still requires stringent measures to stem the spread of Covid-19.”

To resume international air travel, the WHO said it recommended that countries assess the epidemiological situation to determine whether maintaining restrictions outweighs the economic costs of reopening borders if, for instance, there is widespread transmission of the virus. It is also crucial to determine whether the health system can cope with a spike in imported cases and whether the surveillance and contact tracing system can reliably detect and monitor cases.

The WHO says it is important that countries have systems in place at points of entry including airports. Comprehensive entry and exit screening should be considered based on risk assessment and cost-benefit analysis, and as part of the overall national response strategy.

Such screening may target direct flights from areas with community transmission.

“The resumption of commercial flights in Africa will facilitate the delivery of crucial supplies such as testing kits, personal protective equipment and other essential health commodities to areas which need them most. It will also ensure that experts, who can support the response can finally get on the ground and work,” she said.

The impact of Covid-19 on airlines is likely to be severe.

African airlines could lose up to $6billion (R102bn) of passenger revenue compared to last year and job losses in aviation and related industries could reach 3.1million, half of the region’s 6.2million aviation-related employment, according to the International Air Transport Association.

In the worst-case scenario, international air traffic in

Africa could see a 69% drop in international traffic capacity and 59% decline in domestic capacity.

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