NASSAU – The Bahamas government has banned people who have visited Iran, Italy and South Korea from entering the archipelago as it moves to prevent the spread of the coronavirus (Covid-19) there.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement said that based on the advice given by the World Health Organisation (WHO), the virus, which has killed more than 3 000 people worldwide, has now spread to more than 75 countries.
It said that at least 47 of these countries have ten cases or less, while some are reporting their first cases, noting significantly, however, there is a prevalence of cases emerging in a few selected countries with almost 90 per cent of those cases are from three countries: Iran, South Korea and Italy.
“The data is compelling and out of an abundance of caution, the government of The Bahamas has decided to implement border control and quarantine measures for people coming from those countries.
Effective immediately, any non-resident who has visited South Korea, Iran or Italy in the last 20 days will be denied entry into The Bahamas.
“These countries will be added to China, for which, we implemented such measures on January 30, 2020. As such, Bahamian citizens and residents returning from all four jurisdictions will now be subjected to quarantine measures for a maximum of 14 days. Non-residents currently en route to The Bahamas from these jurisdictions will be subjected to the same protocol for returning citizens and residents,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs added.
It said that there are no reported or confirmed cases of the virus here, adding “at this time, the government of The Bahamas is taking extra precautions to protect the safety and health of our residents and visitors.
“This new advisory is part of the government’s enhanced effort to address this public health threat.”
(CMC)
