Rwanda: Covid-19 – Israel Lists Rwanda As Only African Country in “Green” Category

BY OUR CORRESPONDENT

KIGALI, Rwanda|SHIFTMEDIA NEWS| Rwanda and Isreal have clinched a deal to boost tourism and trade amidst the Covid 19 pandemic. Some of the measures put in place include RwandAir’s direct flight to Tel Aviv that began mid-last year and would fly three times a week, before being halted as a result of Covid-19.

The Government of Israel listed Rwanda among the “green countries” as far as Covid-19 is concerned.

According to the Middle Eastern country, a green country is any country from which Israelis will not need to be quarantined 14 days after their return home.

The countries were determined in accordance with the rate of Covid-19 infections prevailing in them and mechanisms in place to contain the virus.

The list is reviewed every two weeks, Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

Apart from Rwanda, other countries on the list are Greece, Bulgaria, and Croatia.

However, there are also other European countries on the list but haven’t yet opened their skies for Israeli citizens whereas others require a 14-day quarantine before entry, among other restrictions.

Speaking to The New Times, Ron Adam, the Israeli Ambassador to Rwanda, he said that this is an opportunity that should be seized by Rwanda to boost the number of tourists.

“The first idea was to list European countries, but based on statistics of the state of Covid-19 in Rwanda, I managed to explain to the government of Israel commendable measures Rwanda has enforced to combat the pandemic, and good enough the country was also considered as a green country,” he told The New Times.

He added that: “Considering that there are currently few places in the world where Israelites are allowed to travel, Rwanda should seize this opportunity and add more efforts in branding the country in Israel so that we can have more tourists visiting this beautiful country that has diverse interesting sites and opportunities.”

According to Adam, around 200 people from Israel visited Rwanda since mid-last year, and around 300 Rwandans visited Israel in the same period, a number he said can be increased.

Some of the measures put in place to boost tourism between Israel and Rwanda include RwandAir’s direct flight to Tel Aviv that began mid-last year and would fly three times a week, before being halted as a result of Covid-19.

Though Rwanda opened her skies to commercial flights in the beginning of August, RwandAir Chief Executive Officer, Yvonne Manzi Makolo, early this month told The New Times that the carrier will embark on a gradual reopening strategy like many other airlines across the world.

So far, the airlines has reopened routes that include Lusaka, Libreville, Nairobi, Kilimanjaro, Dar es Salaam, Douala and Cotonou in Africa, while Dubai remains the only destination outside Africa that is operational so far.

Travel restrictions in place

Some of the mandatory travel restrictions that all passengers coming in Rwanda should adhere to include presenting a negative Covid-19 test done within five days of departure from the point of departure.

Additionally, all travelers arriving or transiting through Rwanda will be screened upon entry and take a second RT-PCR test to confirm the negative results of the test done prior to arrival.

On this note, travelers are required to wait 24 hours for the results of their Covid-19 test in a designated transit hotel; and while in the waiting period, they should observe all prevention measures announced by the Ministry of Health.

Also, all arriving travelers must complete the passenger locator form and upload the Covid-19 test certificate on the RBC website prior to arrival.