Omicron triggers global fears for future travel

How bad is Omicron going to be? No one really knows, but, that hasn’t stopped several countries from unleashing blanket measures to keep it at bay. Some countries have suspended entry of all foreign visitors, whilst others have barred foreign tourist from listed countries in Africa and Europe.

Switzerland for example has placed Belgium, Netherlands, Israel, the UK and Hong Kong on its mandatory quarantine list. Switzerland shares land borders with five countries and has a considerable amount of workers crossing borders. Unless these other five countries adapt the same measures, it begs the question; what practically do porous restrictions like this achieve? Perhaps buy time to better understand Omicron?

The World Health Organisation (WHO) after earlier announcing that Omicron is a variant of concern goes as far as to term some of these steps as irrational. Meanwhile, scientist has cautioned that it is still unknown if the new variant is more dangerous than the other versions of the virus that has so far killed more than 5 million people.

Omicron has dashed hopes on resuming cross-border travel after the easing of restrictions. That ever flickering ‘light at the end of the tunnel’ keeps receding even as we stagger towards it. As with the Beta and Delta variants, we are once again seeing countries rush to close borders. At this rate we will have variants emerging so often that every word in the Greek alphabet including Omega will be used up. What next?

 Are we losing the war against Covid? According to Umair Haque… we are! In his article “Why we’re losing the war against Covid”, he blames it on “greed, indifference, and, most of all, ass-backwards, jaw-dropping stupidity”. Strong words indeed… but not without good reason. Let the stats he churns out validate his position:-

• Almost 4 billion vaccine doses have been administered globally thus far.
• 6% of the world’s population has received at least one dose of a vaccine at this point.
• Low income countries have a vaccination rate of…1%.
• Lower middle income countries have a vaccination rate of about 25%.
• South Africa,(despite its “upper middle income country” status and from where the Omicron variant emerged), has a vaccination rate of 23%,
• Upper middle income countries have a vaccination rate of about 70%.
• High income countries have a vaccination rate of about 70%.

To summarize, the west needs to stop playing ‘vaccine apartheid’ and from being so short-sighted. It needs to stop hoarding vaccines and help the low income countries. Unless vaccines are shared with the poorer countries; the merry-go-round of border openings / closures and collapsing bubbles will prevail…benefiting the pharma industry and billionaires like Zuckerberg and Bezos who made US$ 1.8 trillion as profits last year - a fraction of which could buy all the vaccines the poor countries need.

This is simply not sustainable and the tourism industry needs to lobby for a strategy driven by logic and data rather than react to panic and opinion. By now, we should know that the virus knows no geographic borders. Nor does it bestow political preferences.

Ilzaf Keefahs is a freelance writer who enjoys focusing on hospitality related matters that he is passionate about, and likes to share his views with hoteliers and customers alike. He delves into the heart of hospitality to figure out both customer service and consumer trends that impact the industry.

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