Senegal: reopening of air links from July 15 but under conditions

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In his speech to the nation on Monday evening, President Macky Sall announced the reopening of the air borders from July 15. The Senegalese sky has been closed since mid-March as part of the fight against the coronavirus. But there will be conditions: the Head of State said that "international flights will resume according to a defined health protocol". And reopening will also and above all depend on whether or not the borders are opened in the destination countries.

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With our correspondent in Dakar, Charlotte Idrac

To leave Senegal by plane, the Ministry of Air Transport presented a health protocol. Main measures: keep your distance at the airport, and wear a mask until arrival at destination.

To enter Senegal this time, a Covid-19 screening test is currently compulsory and free at the airport. "  A measure likely to change at any time,  " says a source familiar with the matter. A passenger in possession of a negative test carried out less than 7 days before taking the plane will not be checked. Each passenger will have to fill out a form to retrace their route.

Another - more diplomatic - aspect of this resumption of air traffic: the reopening or not of the borders of third States. The ECOWAS recommended an opening between member states by July 15 at the latest. However, the European Union is only reopening its borders to 15 countries in the immediate future. In Africa, 4 are on the list: Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia and Rwanda. Senegal is therefore not mentioned, for the moment in any case.

For the time being, the only international flights operating from and to Senegal are so-called “repatriation” flights, one way, for Senegalese nationals stranded outside, or foreign citizens stranded in the country.

Domestic flights have resumed since June 15. Land and sea borders, however, remain closed until further notice. To date, Senegal has recorded 112 deaths linked to the coronavirus, 6793 confirmed cases, including 2249 under treatment.

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• Senegal
• Aeronautics
• Coronavirus

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