The United Kingdom has revised its restrictions on the countries that its citizens are banned from traveling to the UK over coronavirus.
This is seen as a way forward to ease travel restrictions as more countries step up vaccination drives.
In its latest review, the UK has removed Kenya from the red-listed countries effective 4am on September 22, 2021.
Other countries that have been removed from the list include Pakistan, Turkey, Maldives, Egypt, Oman, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh.
“Today’s changes mean a simpler, more straightforward system. One with less testing and lower costs, allowing more people to travel, see loved ones, or conduct business around the world while providing a boost for the travel industry,” UK’s Transport Secretary Grant Shapps.
UK’s Transport Secretary Grant Shapps announced on Friday, September 17, 2021, a simplified system for international travel in light of the success of the UK’s domestic vaccine rollout, providing greater stability for industry and passengers.
Shapps said that the current traffic light system will be replaced by a single red list of countries and territories which will continue to be crucial in order to protect public health, and simplified travel measures for arrivals from the rest of the world Monday, October 4 at 4am.
The secretary added that testing requirements will also be reduced for eligible fully vaccinated travelers, who will no longer need to take a PDT when traveling to England from Monday, October 4.
Shapps said that from October 4, England will welcome fully vaccinated travelers from a host of new countries – who will be treated like returning fully vaccinated UK travelers – including 17 countries and territories such as Japan and Singapore, following the success of an existing pilot with the US and Europe.
In her remarks to the changes, UK’s High Commissioner to Kenya Jane Marriott said that the UK and Kenya’s partnership had been difficult since the travel ban, but the partnership remains strong.
Some of the countries that still remain on the red list include Rwanda, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe among others.
