The UN World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) has released a report that tells about the painful status of the international travel economy. According to the report, 96 per cent of the destinations in the world have imposed travel restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The report mentions that 90 destinations including countries, territories or states have either totally or partially shuttered their borders to outsiders and tourists. It also says that 44 per cent of places are shut just for certain groups of tourists (depending on the country).
The UN report has also listed a breakdown of the same by region (worldwide). It says that 100 per cent of Africa, Asia-Pacific and the Middle East have imposed restrictions on tourist entry from January only. In Europe, it is 93 per cent while in the US, it is 92 per cent.
96% of all global destinations have introduced travel restrictions, research from UNWTO shows.
As soon as it’s safe, we need to get the world moving again to unlock the unparalleled power of tourism in action!
Read the “Travel Restrictions” report here:https://t.co/Yejn2DoGgN pic.twitter.com/KrsADnsSfM
— World Tourism Organization (@UNWTO) April 16, 2020
When it says travel restrictions, it means the following:
1) A total or partial seal down of state/country borders.
2) Destination-specific travel restrictions other than passengers who have transited or travelled through regions that were badly hit by the virus.
3) Total or partial suspension of flights
4) Other things like self-isolation, quarantine, medical certificates or the suspension of visa issuances.
UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili said that the Coronavirus has impacted travel and tourism “like no other event before in history”.
He further said, “the governments have put public health first and introduced full or partial restrictions on travel. With tourism suspended, the benefits the sector brings are under threat. Millions of jobs could be lost, and progress made in the fields of equality and sustainable economic growth could be rolled back. UNWTO therefore calls on governments to continuously review travel restrictions and ease or lift them as soon as it is safe to do so.”
The report emphasised on the needs of lifting the travel restrictions as soon as possible.