Rwanda Reopens Airports To Travelers After Months Of Closure

By Nsunjo Erica

After more than four months of closure and suspension of commercial passenger flights to combat the Covid-19 outbreak, Rwandan airports on Saturday reopened to international travelers.

The suspension didn’t affect cargo and emergency flights. Tourists traveling by charter flights had been allowed to enter the country since June 17.

Rwandan national flag carrier RwandAir, which flew to 29 destinations across 24 countries throughout Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia before it suspended passenger flights on March 20, on Saturday resumed with a flight from Kigali International Airport to Dubai.

According to the Rwandan Minister of Infrastructure Claver Gatete, Kenyan, and Ethiopian Airways made flights to Kigali after its reopening.

RwandAir will restart services with selected African routes where travel restrictions have been eased and borders have reopened, and with one long-haul route to Dubai, while other routes will gradually resume.

The company’s CEO Yvonne Makolo told reporters earlier on Friday that airline will ensure social distancing measures during boarding, deeply clean the planes after each flight. Additionally, the airline will enforce the policy that every passenger is only allowed to take one piece of cabin luggage on board to avoid congestion and too many physical contacts between passengers and luggage.

To ensure the safety of passengers, all travelers are required to adhere to the health guidelines issued by the ministry of health according to Rwandan Minister of Infrastructure Claver Gatete,

According to Airline, Precautionary measures have also been implemented throughout the Kigali International Airport, Rwanda’s main airport, the measures include using protective Plexiglas at check-in and immigration counters, thermal and temperature screening, social distancing markers and increased levels of sanitization in compliance with international standards set out by the relevant authorities

The government guidelines for arrivals require them to be tested negative for Covid-19 within 72 hours before departure and receive a second test upon entry into the country. Seventeen hotels have been designated by the government for travelers to stay while awaiting the result of the second test.

“We expect tourists to come to Rwanda since airlines have resumed and countries have started opening up borders,” Lise Tuyisenge, Managing Director of Phoenix Tour and Travel Agency, said.

According to G-Step, a leading customized tours company in Rwanda, its expectations are not high, although the resumption of flights is a very good sign for the improvement of the business.

The situation of bookings remains dismal and tourists may still not come to the country immediately after airports open, G-Step owner Andrew Gatera said.

The airline which was greatly hit hard by the pandemic, in April said it had resolved to reduce employees’ salaries as part of measures to reduce expenditure.