South Sudan has greenlighted the resumption of international flights nearly four months after closing down its air space in efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19.
The country’s civil aviation authority said flights had already begun landing in Juba as the country continues its recovery from the impacts of the pandemic.
The director-general of Juba International Airport, Kur Kuol, told reporters on Wednesday that an Ethiopian Airlines plane was the first international flight to arrive in Juba, and was now operating daily flights between Ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa and Juba.
Other airlines that had resumed flights to Juba include Egypt Air and Badr Airlines, a Sudanese cargo and passenger airline.
South Sudan’s health ministry requires all arriving passengers to quarantine themselves for 14 days.
“Our air space is now open, we have no restrictions on the airlines. But whoever is coming into the country from outside, whether he or she is a foreigner or a South Sudanese national, must provide a health certificate and must self-quarantine for 14 days before engaging with the public while in the country,” BBC quotes Kuol.
South Sudan has reported 2,021 COVID-19 infections and 38 deaths, according to data from the U.S.-based Johns Hopkins University.
