Manila announced last week its plan to re-authorize the entry of nationals of many countries from December 1, in a bid to boost an economy severely affected by the pandemic.
We will still have to wait.
But the government's Covid-19 Task Force (IATF) changed policy over the weekend, announcing the suspension of flights from seven European countries in addition to banning arrivals from African countries. , decided a little earlier.
So far, the Philippines has not recorded any cases of the Omicron variant, first identified in South Africa.
At the same time, a new three-day vaccination campaign is launched, in order to speed up dose injections for people over 12 years old.
Hard blow for the country's tourist operators
"
The IATF has found it necessary to suspend the entry of foreign tourists, given global concerns about the Omicron variant
," Immigration Bureau Commissioner Jaime Morente said on Monday.
The move is a blow to the country's tourism operators, devastated by a drop in the number of international visitors and restrictions on domestic travel since the border was closed in March 2020.
Tourism is an important sector of the Philippine economy, accounting for nearly 13% of GDP in 2019, thanks to eight million visitors, according to official statistics.
This share of national activity fell to 5.4% last year due to an 82% drop in arrivals to 1.48 million.
The government has eased restrictions in recent weeks, as the infection rate remains at its lowest from the start and the vaccination rate increases.
Almost a third of the 110 million inhabitants are fully vaccinated.
The appearance of the Omicron variant in the world raises fears of the introduction of new restrictions.
The Philippines has recorded 2.8 million infections since the start of the pandemic and 48,000 deaths.
Read alsoGeopolitics and tourism: I love you, neither do I
