Grenada postpones the reopening of its borders

Grenada  (CMC): The Grenada government says it has had to postpone the planned reopening of the international airport to July 15, because of the heightened risks from the coronavirus (COVID-19) seen in some major source markets in recent weeks.

In a statement, the Keith Mitchell administration said that while it is cognizant of the many Grenadian nationals abroad wishing to return home; as well as others who are eager to visit the island, his administration has had to put additional safety measures in place as the pandemic has worsened in major source markets, such as the United States.

“In view of this, the initial July 1 date indicated for the commercial reopening of Grenada’s borders had to be postponed because of the heightened risks seen in some major source markets. We also had to secure our domestic capacity to mitigate against any increased spread of the virus, resulting from incoming passengers,” the statement said.

It said that the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation has been in contact with the management of the airlines and other stakeholders, “as we plan for a smooth and secure process, when borders are eventually reopened." The government said that the reopening process takes into consideration the health risks possibly posed by passengers coming from different regions of the world and that countries would be categorised as low, medium or high-risk for the purposes of entry requirements to Grenada

“From July 15, the airport will accept commercial flights from countries across the Caribbean region, viewed as low-risk. From August 1, the airport will accept international flights from countries listed as medium-risk, such as Canada, the United Kingdom and other countries in the European Union.”

The government said that only chartered flights would be accommodated from all other countries not mentioned, until further notice and that Grenadians and visitors wishing to charter a flight from any country, in the interim, must do so through a private entity.

“Government has accepted a proposal from Caribbean International Trade Inc. to manage all the logistics of this engagement, including the verification of the health and testing requirements, and quarantine accommodations,” the statement noted.

Grenada has so far confirmed 23 cases of the virus. Follow The Gleaner on Twitter and Instagram @JamaicaGleaner and on Facebook @GleanerJamaica. Send us a message on WhatsApp at 1-876-499-0169 or email us at onlinefeedback@gleanerjm.com or editors@gleanerjm.com.