MANILA, Sept 4 (NNN-PNA) – The Philippines will lift travel ban for all inbound travellers from India and nine other countries, starting Sept 6, despite the rising COVID-19 cases fueled by the highly contagious Delta variant, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said.
Philippine President, Rodrigo Duterte, approved the recommendation of the inter-agency COVID-19 task force, to lift the current travel restrictions in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia.
“International travellers coming from the above mentioned countries shall, however, comply with the appropriate entry, testing, and quarantine protocols,” Roque said in a statement.
However, foreign tourists are still banned from entering the country, except for holders of special visas, such as diplomats and foreign spouses of Filipino citizens.
The local transmission of the Delta variant has spread to communities in the Philippines. The country detected 1,789 Delta cases, including 33 deaths. The World Health Organisation confirmed the community transmission of the Delta variant, saying, it is now the dominant COVID-19 strain spreading in the Philippines.
In Apr, the Philippines imposed a ban on India and later expanded to include the nine other countries with Delta cases.
The Philippines is now grappling with soaring COVID-19 infections. The country reported a total of 2,040,568 confirmed cases as of yesterday, including 33,873 deaths.– NNN-PNA
