JHTA against closing borders to US travellers
Published:Wednesday | July 22, 2020 | 12:28 AMJanet Silvera/Senior Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
The Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA) says that it will “not be advocating” for the closure of Jamaica’s borders to travellers from the United States.
Instead, the tourism stakeholder group has called for the ramping up of mitigation measures as it relates to testing for COVID-19.
The hoteliers have drawn a red line distancing themselves from posture of the Bahamian government which will ban flights from the US effective midnight Wednesday.
JHTA President Omar Robinson made the disclosure while responding to questions during his address at an online press briefing on Tuesday morning in Kingston.
Robinson, who noted that 70 per cent of visitors to Jamaica come from the United States and that as many as 24 flights arrive in Montego Bay and Kingston daily, has backed the pretesting regime imposed on travellers.
“We believe that everybody from the US should be pretested and we think all Jamaicans coming into the country should be pretested, whether it is through the PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test or the rapid antigen test, which we are advocating for,” he said.
The JHTA president said that widening the access to COVID tests would shore up what he described as robust protocols that are being implemented by hotels and other tourism-related establishments.
In supporting the call, JHTA Director Wayne Cummings also made an appeal for a recalibration of the Ministry of Health & Wellness’ travel protocols.
STRATEGIC PHASING
Cummings said that a more strategic phasing of our reopening protocols would go a long way to reduce confusion and prevent the current “last-minute cancellations by visitors who are unable to meet the new requirements in time to travel”.
“... We appreciate the complexity and unpredictable nature of the pandemic. By the time we circulate the changes and the travel agents advise their clients, a new set of protocols are issued,” Cummings said.
The JHTA is suggesting expanding the window for the protocols even if it means maintaining stricter protocols for a longer period.
Cummings also implored the health ministry to work with local laboratories to implement a more robust testing regime and stronger screening strategy, a move he said could be achieved through the placing of greater emphasis on working with private local laboratories and other medical practitioners to administer tests. He said this would enable early identification of infection and guarantee better protection of Jamaican nationals and visitors alike.
“In many of our source markets, the access to tests, particularly PCR tests, is difficult and may take up to seven days to get the results ... ,” Cummings said.