Botswana has no plans to bar travellers from India despite the Ministry of Health and Wellness having announced a variant detected in the former was found in the country.
This followed a case investigation within Greater Gaborone, involving people of Indian origin who arrived in the country on the 24th April 2021. As at 16 May 2021, the B. 1. 617 variant, was confirmed in two people.
Government spokesperson Andrew Sesinyi said Botswana was not considering plans to ban travellers from India. Some countries in Africa such as Ghana, have banned flights from India after they confirmed the variant.
“The Government will thus, continue to monitor the situation, and will take the necessary steps as may be necessary. Banning international travel or closing borders is at this stage of the pandemic management, no longer a potent Covid-19 Response intervention for Botswana or any country dealing with the global pandemic,” said Sesinyi.
He said such intervention at a time when the world is adjusting to the new normal would only serve to isolate the country and shut down its economy.
He reiterated that Botswana continues to be on high alert and has intensified preparedness measures including surveillance and monitoring at ports of entry and district levels, in order to rapidly respond to any emerging public health crisis.
“In light of the above, measures that have so far been put in place in relation to travellers from high-risk countries include: Immediate quarantine of all travelers from those countries, in a central area to be identified by the Ministry of Health and Wellness for a period not exceeding ten (10) days.
Repeat Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test after seven (7) days of quarantine, whereupon the travelers could be discharged as per the outcome of the results,” said Sesinyi.
When announcing that the variant was found in Botswana recently, the Ministry of Health and Welness spokesperson, Christopher Nyanga said: “The clients are currently receiving medical care and remain stable with no life-threatening symptoms. The two (2) cases were part of 383 people (both Batswana and some Indian nationals) who were tested for Covid-19.”
He said from this number, 43 tested positive, with two (2) showing the B. 1. 617 variant, as already alluded to. Contact tracing has been expanded in line with Covid-19 protocols.
All contacts and confirmed cases, he said, have been evacuated to facility-based quarantine and isolation respectively, for close monitoring.
It is understood that spread of the new variants of coronavirus in Africa have raised concerns by the Africa Centre for Disease Control which has warned member states to avoid complacency.
