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West African ministers propose phased re-opening of borders

Published 17/06/2020, 19:51
West African ministers propose phased re-opening of borders

ABIDJAN, June 17 (Reuters) - West African government
ministers have proposed re-opening borders between their
countries in the first half of July and allowing in travellers
from other countries with low or controlled levels of
coronavirus spread by the end of July.
Countries across the 15-country ECOWAS trade bloc have
imposed varying levels of travel restrictions in response to the
COVID-19 pandemic, with many shutting their borders entirely.
The new proposal, contained in an ECOWAS summary of a
virtual meeting last week of foreign ministers and trade
ministers, called for coordinated efforts to re-open
cross-border trade that has been crippled by coronavirus
restrictions.
It said a first phase consisting of opening up domestic air
and land transport should be implemented this month. Many
governments in the region have already begun to do so.
A second phase, involving the opening of land, air and
maritime borders within the region, should happen by July 15 at
the latest.
A third phase, involving the opening of air and land borders
to "countries with low and controlled levels of COVID-19
contamination rates", should occur by July 31 but will depend on
the evolution of the pandemic, the report said.
The ministers' recommendations will be presented to ECOWAS
heads of state at a forthcoming summit, it said.
African governments have struggled since the start of the
outbreak to strike a balance between containing the virus and
maintaining the day-to-day economic activities that millions of
their citizens depend on to survive.
African countries have registered relatively few cases
compared to hotspots elsewhere in the world, but the World
Health Organization warned last week that the pandemic was
accelerating on the continent.

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