Visitors arriving from China will be subjected to mandatory COVID-19 testing in Ghana.
Passengers arriving at Kotoka International Airport (KIA) from China will be required to undergo free mandatory COVID-19 testing as part of updated travel guidelines for the country.
Passengers from China must also present a valid negative COVID-19 PCR test result 48 hours before departure from their home country, according to the most recent guidelines, which go into effect on January 6, 2023.
All other passengers from countries other than China who are partially or completely immunized must present a valid COVID-19 PCR test result 48 hours before departure from the originating country. Furthermore, upon arrival at the KIA, such passengers will be required to undergo mandatory COVID-19 testing at no cost.
The new guidelines were developed in response to a shift in the global COVID-19 situation, specifically a surge in new cases in China and other countries, as well as Ghana’s relatively low vaccine coverage.
The measures are intended to address the current COVID-19 threat, particularly with regard to case importation.
Sanctions
Passengers may be randomly selected and offered COVID-19 tests upon arrival, while non-Ghanaians arriving at the KIA with fake or forged vaccination certificates will be quarantined and returned to the point of embarkation at their own expense.
Airlines that bring passengers to the KIA who are not fully vaccinated or passengers from China who do not have a valid negative COVID-19 PCR test result 48 hours before departure will be charged a $3,500 surcharge.
Temperature screening, Yellow Fever Card verification, and COVID-19 vaccination certificate verification will be performed on all arriving passengers.
Exemptions
– Children less than 18 years of age are exempt from mandatory vaccination, predeparture PCR testing and testing on arrival in Ghana
– Airline crew are exempted from the pre-departure and arrival COVID-19 testing and should follow the Airline policy for testing.
– Passengers who arrive under emergency circumstances such as diverted flights will not be required to undergo testing if they do not leave the airport or remain in isolation in their hotel.
Vaccination
Fully Vaccinated is defined as having received the full dose of vaccines approved and registered by the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA), Ghana, or other vaccines prequalified by WHO (https://covid19.trackvaccines.org/agency/who).
Except for partially vaccinated or unvaccinated Ghanaians, who must present a negative 48-hour PCR test result to the airline before embarkation and to Port Health upon arrival, all passengers must present a valid COVID-19 vaccination certificate demonstrating that they were fully vaccinated at least 14 days prior to embarkation.
Similar actions
Morocco has also issued similar directives to Chinese passengers. Morocco will ban all Chinese visitors, regardless of nationality, beginning Tuesday and continuing until further notice.
The Moroccan Foreign Ministry stated that the move is intended to prevent an outbreak of infections in the country.
The moves follow China’s abrupt removal of Covid-19 controls in December of last year.
Other countries outside of Africa have imposed restrictions as well.
Passengers arriving in England from China, for example, must now provide a negative Covid test before boarding a flight. People are being tested upon arrival in the United States.
About Author
