Confirmed COVID-19 Cases
# INFECTED: 72
# ACTIVE: 51
# DECEASED: 0
# RECOVERED: 21
# TESTED: 7,585

Huge disappointment for Namibia fans and the travel industry: The government is continuing to relax the Corona related restrictions, but the borders will remain closed. As president Hage Geingob announced yesterday, stage 4 of the “4 stage schedule” will start on 30 June as planned. It should last ten weeks and therefore only end on September 17. The Erongo region today went from lockdown into stage 3 and will follow the rest of Namibia into stage 4 on 7 July.

For stage 4 it was actually intended to open the borders and to allow international flights again. Air Namibia cancelled all flights until the end of August.

Travel destination: Quarantine

The announcement of a targeted “International Tourism Revival Initiative” caused shakings of the head. From July 15 to August 15, the government will allow a limited number of tourists from a carefully selected country to enter Namibia. Condition: A negative SARS-CoV-2 PCR test in the country of origin, which must not be older than 72 hours, another test upon entry and 14 days in quarantine.

However, the “5 stage schedule” to relax the corona measures, published today, triggered real horror in the travel industry. In stage 5, the “new normal”, the borders should be opened. However, the mandatory 14-day quarantine remains.

Talks with government

Stage 5 is to apply from September 18 to December 30. With the quarantine in place, tour operators, car rental companies, activity providers and souvenir dealers, but also accommodations can bury their last hopes for a bit of income from September through December. The main season in Namibia lasts from July to the end of November.

By the end of the week, representatives of the travel industry want to talk to the government about the modalities of the tourism initiative in July / August. Their aim is to exclude the quarantine regulation from the final legal text for stage 4.

27 new infections

Overall, however, the population was relieved to see the measures relaxed further. Many feared a step backwards to stage 2 or even lockdown, as the number of registered infections is increasing rapidly. The main reason is the targeted testing of contact persons of known cases.

Health Minister Kalumbi Shangula announced nine new cases on Sunday, eight on Monday and nine today. Again most cases were reported from the coast. Walvis Bay and the suburb of Kuisebmund: five men (30 to 65 years old), 15 women (21 – 59), a girl (14) and a boy (2); Swakopmund: a 43-year-old man.

A South African woman (65) tested positive in Windhoek and an Indian woman (28) tested positive in the quarantine camp in Gross Barmen. In Oshikango on the northern border of Namibia, a 71-year-old truck driver, who had previously been to South Africa, reported to the clinic with corona symptoms.

Health Minister Shangula also announced the recovery of COVID-19 patients No. 23 and No. 25.