Standard global travel rules needed to encourage travellers, revive tourism

By TIN Media | Airlines Published 3 years ago on 24 February 2021
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MALAYSIA:

Aviation stakeholders agree that the implementation of vaccines would help promote the return of air travel, but said it was important to introduce a generally known travel standard and globally recognised passports for vaccines.

They said the closure of international borders to contain the Covid-19 spread has not stifled public demand, and predict that as soon as it is safe to do so, people will want to fly.

Mohsin Aziz, who manages the aviation investment fund, spoke at a forum organized by the Malaysian Academy of Sciences on the recovery of the aviation industry, saying that safety guarantees will be critical for travellers once borders are reopened.

"The demand for travel is high everywhere, everybody wants to go out," he said, adding that there was a need for greater cooperation between countries and international authorities to create public confidence.

He said that if a standard can be agreed upon, a "vaccine passport" spoken about by Health Minister Dr. Adham Baba, the International Air Travel Association and others would be crucial in promoting international travel.

The vaccine passport definition is not new. Some 20-30 years ago, if you came from those countries in Africa or Latin America, you needed to bring a yellow card with a vaccine record.

"If this vaccine card is back, we should not view it with any reservation," Mohsin said, adding that, based on the latest computer technology, such a system could be introduced reasonably easily and without prohibitive cost.

Such a 'passport' will provide recipient countries with confirmation that Covid-19 was vaccinated by a traveler, which some claim would be an integral part of future travel.

Azharuddin Abdul Rahman, former chairman of the Malaysian Civil Aviation Authority, said that in order to eliminate uncertainty and ensure the effectiveness of various virus mitigation strategies, there needs to be standardization around the globe.

He pointed out that countries such as India and China have long lists of criteria for travelers, whereas places such as Japan have very clear guidelines.

As long as you have policy differences between different countries, it will be hard for people to fly and they won't want to do it.

"We need a strong global body that can look at and bring some consistency to multiple countries' policies."

The duration of quarantine times, the related regulations and when experiments are carried out, for example, is now at the discretion of individual governments.


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