Federal Government has on Monday added South Africa to the existing list of countries where inbound non-Nigerian passengers are temporarily banned from entering the country.
It also extended the ban on travellers from Brazil, India and Turkey due to the rising COVID-19 cases in those countries by one month.
Recall that on May 2, 2021 announced a temporary ban on non-Nigerian passengers who have been in Brazil, India or Turkey within 14 days of intended arrival into Nigeria.
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Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) and Chairman of the Presidential Steering Committee (PSC) on COVID-19, Boss Mustapha, said these on Monday in Abuja at the national briefing of the committee.
He stated that the ban of the countries shall be subjected to review after an initial period of four weeks.
Mustapha said his committee has been reviewing these restrictions and agrees they should remain for another four weeks before it is further reviewed.
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He stated;
A few weeks ago, we announced additional measures to be met by passengers arriving from Brazil, Turkey and India.
This action was due to the prevalence of variants of concern and the dangers associated with importation of such virulent strain.
The PSC has been reviewing these restrictions and is of the opinion that they should remain for another four (4) weeks before it is further reviewed.
Nigerian passengers from those countries are also expected to fulfill some stringent conditions before they are allowed into the country.
The announcement was said to be in response to the spike in COVID-19 cases in the African country.
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Mustapha, who doubles as the secretary to the government of the federation (SGF) noted that the prevalence of variants of concern in South Africa and the dangers associated with importation of such virulent strains to Nigeria made the decision inevitable.
He also said that in addition to the banned countries, the PSC has also shifted its focus on some African countries, including South Africa, Zambia, Rwanda, Namibia and Uganda.
The SGF expressed;
South Africa for example, recorded over 100,000 cases in the last one week while 20,000 was recorded in the last 24 hours.
The four major variants of concern are now classified as Alpha (UK), Beta (SA); Gamma (Brazil) and Delta (India). The Delta variant which has wrecked devastating havoc, is not yet found in Nigeria hence the need to tighten our borders and be more vigilant.
Speaking on passport ban of violators, the SGF said that about six months ago, travel documents of some inbound passengers to Nigeria were barred for a period of 6 months for violating government COVID-19 protocols.
He stated;
We have received several appeals from those affected while we counselled on the importance of compliance with rules and regulations. The six-month period of ban for the first batch of 100 is almost complete and we use this opportunity to reassure Nigerians that sanctions will be imposed on violators of measures put in place to protect them and safeguard our nation.
In South Africa’s Gauteng province, the most populous part of the country, COVID-19 patients are waiting for hours, even days, on stretchers in accident and emergency wards before being found a bed, a report on the Guardian shows.
This has led authorities in South Africa to impose new restrictions to stem the sharp rise in COVID-19 cases.
South Africa’s rising cases are part of a resurgence across Africa, with a peak expected to exceed that of earlier waves as the continent’s 54 countries struggle to vaccinate even a small percentage of their populations.
World Health Organisation (WHO) has repeatedly appealed for vaccines for Africa, saying a fast-surging COVID-19 third wave is outpacing efforts to protect populations, “leaving more and more dangerously exposed”.
Matshidiso Moeti, WHO regional director for Africa, recently said;
Africa is facing a fast-surging third wave of COVID-19 pandemic, with cases spreading more rapidly and projected to soon overtake the peak of the second wave the continent witnessed at the start of 2021.
The official said the third wave is “picking up speed, spreading faster, hitting harder.”
As at 20 June, which is 48 days into the new wave, Africa had recorded around 474,000 new cases– a figure 21 per cent higher than the increase for the same period in the second wave.
At the current rate of infections, the WHO estimates that the case numbers will surpass the peak of the second wave by early July.
African countries have recorded over 5.4 million cases and almost 145,000 deaths, according to data from worldometers.com, a platform providing statistics on the situation of COVID-19 around the world.
