Aviation analyst, Sean Mendis, has described the recent decision by the UK government to recognize vaccine certificates issued in Ghana for people fully vaccinated with AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson and Johnson, as a positive development for UK-Ghana trade.

The British High Commission in Accra on Thursday, October 7, tweeted the news, saying it was part of efforts to reduce the number of requirements for persons entering the UK.

This comes weeks after a tiered UK travel system was announced, which saw fully vaccinated travellers from some countries being allowed to travel to the UK without having to isolate, while fully vaccinated travellers from other countries including Ghana were still required to isolate after getting to the UK.

At the time, some persons criticized the move, saying it suggested the UK government did not recognize the vaccines administered in places like Ghana as being the same as those administered in the UK, an assertion the UK government denied.

Speaking to Citi Business News on the new development, Mr. Mendis noted that all measures that will help in opening up borders in a safe way are welcomed and would improve trade.

“This is a very positive thing for Ghana’s business community, especially when you look at the fact that the U.S. is also going to be removing the travel restrictions on transit through the UK. So I know that there are a lot of business people who have ties in both the UK and U.S. and previously because of the travel bans in the U.S. would need to travel back to Ghana from the U.K. and spend time here before heading to the U.S.”

“Anything which opens up borders, anything which removes these artificial obstructions and is able to do so safely is a good thing for business, for travel, for airlines and for all stakeholders,” he added.
Existing restrictions

Passengers who aren’t recognized as being fully vaccinated with authorized vaccines and certificates under England’s international travel rules will still have to take a pre-departure test, a day 2 and day 8 PCR test and self-isolate for 10 days upon their return from a non-red list country under the new two-tiered travel programme.