Singapore has embarked on the arduous task of re-establishing itself as an international aviation hub in Asia. As it advances its plan to reopen and coexist with the new crown virus, it has opened its borders to five other countries.
The city-state said on Monday that it will allow fully vaccinated people from countries such as India, Indonesia and Saudi Arabia to travel without isolation because it hopes to safely survive the pandemic that left 5.7 million residents at home for more than a year .
The Ministry of Health said in a statement on Monday that vaccinated tourists from Indonesia and India will enter Singapore from November 29, while tourists from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar will start on December 6. You can enter Singapore without isolation. Children 12 years and younger who have not been vaccinated can accompany eligible adults.
Singapore plans to start arrangements with Indonesia to open two designated flights a day between Singapore and Jakarta, and will increase to four, said Transport Minister S. Iswaran. He said its goal is to have two flights each day from Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai. These two countries are the top five markets for Singapore Changi Airport passengers to arrive in 2019.
The Southeast Asian country gradually reopened its borders to general travel in September, when it began a vaccination travel route with Germany and Brunei. This city-state has been home to the best airport in the world for eight years before 2020. It has abandoned the Covid-Zero policy and adopted a coexistence with the virus.
A risk official said that as travel routes open and the country continues to relax restrictions on Covid, the infection rate may increase, and given the increasing number of vaccinations, they are willing to take the risk. On average, about 2,700 new infections are diagnosed every day, which is slightly less than in recent weeks as the current epidemic subsides.
Health Minister Wang Yikang said at a briefing with reporters on Monday: "We should expect higher transmission rates and infections in the next few days and weeks." "However, while this happens, we are also proceeding. With more booster injections, more people are recovering safely from the infection and are resistant to the virus."
He said that it is only a matter of time before natural immunity and vaccine protection will reduce the infection rate again.
Currently, 13 countries including the United States, Canada, and Italy have joined the VTL program. Malaysia, Finland and Sweden will join the list on November 29. Detailed information on travel arrangements with Malaysia will be announced later this week.
According to the statement, when the latest country joins the list, the daily quota for people arriving in Singapore under the VTL program will be increased from 6,000 to 10,000. This will be about 13% of the daily arrivals at Changi Airport before Covid. As of November 14, more than 24,000 vaccinated travelers have entered Singapore under these arrangements.
Since 85% of the population has been fully vaccinated, the country is trying to embark on a path of reopening to rebuild its central position and tightly control infections that could overwhelm the healthcare system.
Changi Airport was the second busiest international flight in Asia last year, and passenger traffic in the first nine months of this year was only 2% of the pre-epidemic level.
Although Singapore Airlines has been losing money due to the pandemic, the route has already benefited the airline. It carried 165,000 passengers in October, up from 136,000 a month ago.
Here are more details on the steps to reopen Singapore:
-Singapore allows more immigrant workers confined to dormitories to rejoin the community-from 3,000 vaccinated workers per week to 3,000 per day.
-Singapore is resuming commercial activities, sports and live performances through pilot vaccination and testing. First, this week's Milken Institute Asia Summit and Bloomberg New Economic Forum, and then a two-day charity concert later this month.
-Officials said they are working to resume international events in stages, such as the Formula One night racing event that attracted a large number of international tourists before the pandemic. Singapore is negotiating with F1 management and the Singapore Grand Prix to renew the contract.
-The authorities are seeking to implement access control and inspection systems in food courts to distinguish between fully vaccinated and unvaccinated customers. Once the system is in place, up to five people living in the same residence can eat in these places. Currently, this rule only applies to restaurants.