Guyana removes testing for COVID before travelling here

The Ministry of Health on Friday announced that some COVID-19 requirements for international travellers entering the country will be lifted.

A post on the ministry’s Facebook page confirmed that the relaxation of testing requirements for international travel will be effective from June 18, 2022.

Travellers 12 years and older are still required to be fully vaccinated for entry into Guyana.

Health Minister Dr Frank Anthony subsequently told reporters at the sidelines of an event on Friday that the decision comes following an evaluation of the number of cases and the availability of COVID-19 vaccines in the country.

“We have less than 1,000 cases in the whole country so we’re monitoring this.

“Having looked at where we are in terms of vaccination, we felt very comfortable that we can now remove the requirement for antigen or PCR testing,” the Health Minister said.

However, the country will maintain, for travellers into Guyana, that they produce vaccination cards before they are allowed on the plane.

Asked about the possibility of infected persons entering the country, Dr Anthony responded, “even if we have people who are positive, we have enough capacity to be able to treat people whether they are in hospital because the Ocean View facility we have 198 beds so if people get sick, we can deal with any surge and in addition to that at all our regional hospitals we who have beds for COVID patients.”

There are ten patients at the Infectious Disease Hospital, Liliendaal, and since January of this year the number of cases has decreased with less persons being hospitalised.

According to the minister, 68 per cent of Guyanese are fully vaccinated with almost 100 per cent taking at least one dose of the vaccine, which is high and puts the country is in a good position.