Airports in Egypt will be reopened on the 1st of July and open up the beach resorts that have been shut down in the wake of the COVID 19 outbreak.
Aviation , Minister Mohammed Manar says in a news conference in Cairo.
According to the southafrican com,flights will resume “between Egypt and countries which have reopened their airspace. We hope that business will resume,” he added.
The outbreak of the COVID 19 pandemic had led to Egypt stopping their air traffic, closed down archaeological sites, museums and hotels as a measure of containment of the ravaging pandemic.
ThE Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Khaled al-Anani during the briefing said with the resumption of international flights , only three governorates famed for their beach resorts will be allowed to welcome tourists which included the Red Sea, South Sinai and Marsa Matruh.
“We chose these three governorates because they are coastal, far from the main centres, and have reported the lowest numbers of virus infections,” The government has also decided “to waive tourist visas from 1 July until 31 October,” Khaled al- Anani added.
Other tourist sites including the pyramids at Giza, the Egyptian museum in Cairo and Luxor’s Karnak temple will reopen progressively, Anani said.
“We are not in a hurry. We want to ensure everyone’s health and our reputation as a tourist destination,” he added.
Over 200 hotels have received permission to reopen to tourists after implementing strict sanitary measures, including spacing out restaurant tables and restricting elevator capacities.
The Minister also warned that any establishment breaching health regulations will have this authorization revoked, adding that the government would offer “no leniency in this area”.
Egypt’s health ministry has so far registered around 43 000 COVID-19 cases in its population of over 100 million, including close to 1 500 fatalities.
In late May, Egypt’s top medical union warned of a potential “complete collapse” of the country’s health system in the face of the pandemic.
Egypt is famous for its ancient civilization and some of the world’s most famous monuments, including the Giza pyramids, the Great Sphinx and the ancient temples of Luxor dating back thousands of years.
By Francis Ogwo
SOURCE: southafrican.com
