The Nigerian government on Monday announced new measures for passengers traveling into the country from the UK and South Africa in the wake of a surge in COVID-19 cases locally and the detection of new COVID-19 variants in those countries.
Passengers from those two countries will have to present a pre-departure permit to fly/QR code and evidence of a negative COVID-19 OCR result done within 96 hours of beginning their journey.
Passengers from the two countries will also be received and processed separately by public health authorities upon arrival into Nigeria. Additionally, all such passengers will be required to self-isolate for seven days after arrival after which they will have to undertake a COVID-19 PCR test.
Passengers who will test positive for COVID-19 thereafter will be referred for isolation and further management while those who test negative will be allowed to leave isolation.
Moreover, a dedicated register of arrivals from the UK and South Africa will be opened for improved surveillance and active enforcement of the measures.
All airlines which have passengers traveling from the UK and South Africa are subject to the regulations, which take effect from December 28.
The Nigerian government also set out stiff penalties for airlines which fail to comply with the regulations.
Airlines face fines of $3,500 for each defaulting passenger and may be compelled to return such non-Nigerian passengers to their point of origin.
Airlines also face suspension from operating in the country if there are repeated violations of the regulations.
South Africa recently announced a new variant of COVID-19 (501.V2) was driving the country’s current resurgence of the disease, resulting in greater numbers of confirmed cases, hospitalizations and deaths.
The variant is dominant among new confirmed infections in South Africa, according to health officials and scientists leading the country’s virus strategy.
Meanwhile, the UK variant, dubbed B.1.1.7, has rapidly become the dominant strain in cases of COVID-19 in parts of southern England, and has been linked to an increase in hospitalization rates, especially in London and in the adjacent county of Kent.
As of December 28, Nigeria has reported more than 84,000 confirmed cases and more than 1,200 deaths.
