Kenya and the United Kingdom have agreed to set up a Joint Emergency Committee to address the recent reciprocal travel restrictions that both sides have imposed on each other.
This is after the Government ordered the indefinite suspension of all international flights from the U.K., effective April 9, 2021, following the U.K.’s decision to ban flights from Kenya.
The diplomatic tit-for-tat has since forced national carrier, Kenya Airways to indefinitely suspend its flights to London.
“Cabinet Secretary Amb. Raychelle Omamo today held positive deliberations with the U.K. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab. They agreed on the establishment of a Joint Emergency Committee to address COVID-19 Emergency travel restrictions,” said Kenya’s Foreign Ministry.
“CS Amb Omamo and Dominic Raab underlined the need to work on strengthening trade and deepening regional security,” the Ministry’s statement added.
The date for the establishment of the Joint Emergency Committee, or any change in Kenya’s earlier travel advisory has however not been established.
The move to calm the simmering diplomatic row comes nearly a week after the U.K announced a ban on passengers arriving from Kenya starting April 9, 2021.
The U.K. cited the spread of the South African coronavirus variant in Kenya as the major reason for blacklisting Kenya.
In mid-March, the U.K had issued a warning saying that Kenya risked being enlisted on the U.K blacklist of countries from where travellers are subjected to mandatory stay at quarantine hotels due to the government’s reluctance to close the border with neighbouring Tanzania.
Kenya retaliated by requiring all passengers originating or transiting through U.K. to undergo a mandatory 14-day isolation upon arrival and take 2 PCR COVID-19 tests at their own cost.
Passengers from the U.K. are also required to produce a negative COVID-19 test certificate and a valid COVID-19 vaccination certificate.
However, cargo flights between Kenya and the U.K. as well as Kenyan nationals residing in the U.K. or transiting through U.K. airports were exempted from these requirements.
