Eight countries are on Malaysia's travel ban list

PUTRAJAYA: The Ministry of Health (MOH) has listed eight countries on temporary travel restriction with Malawi being the latest on the list following the spread of a new COVID-19 variant known as Omicron.

Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said on Nov 26, the MOH added South Africa, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia and Zimbabwe on the list of temporary travel restriction.

"Today, Malawi is added to the list, taking the total number of countries to eight," he told a press conference here today.

He said 20 countries had detected the new coronavirus variant as of yesterday and 203 of the 215 cases of the Omicron variant had been reported on the Global Initiative on Sharing All Influenza Data (GISAID) website.

The MOH will prepare a list of countries that have reported cases of Omicron variant or are at high risk of the spread of the new variant on a daily basis and it will be distributed to the Foreign Ministry; Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture; Ministry of Transport and Immigration Department through the National Security Council, said Khairy.

Khairy said it was part of the control and prevention measures against Omicron variant that had been tabled and agreed upon at the COVID-19 Ministerial Quartet Meeting yesterday.

He said the government had decided to delay plans to set up vaccinated travel lane (VTL) with the countries that have reported the spread of the variant as listed until a clearer picture of the variant was obtained at a global level while travellers participating in the Malaysia-Singapore VTL by air and land will be required to conduct a COVID-19 self test on the third and seventh day upon arrival.

Khairy also said tourists from countries that have reported Omicron transmission or high-risk countries will not be allowed to participate in the Langkawi international tourism bubble programme.

"Malaysian citizens (Langkawi residents) returning from countries that have reported Omicron transmission or high-risk countries are allowed to enter Malaysia through the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) and have to undergo a 14-day mandatory quarantine at special quarantine stations.

"Foreign tourists who test positive for COVID-19 Omicron variant will be placed in isolation at private hospitals and will have to bear the cost of treatment themselves," he said.

The entry of international students and foreign workers from affected countries has also been postponed, Khairy said.

He said the autogate system at the Immigration Department will be suspended with immediate effect.

Flights carrying passengers from countries that have reported Omicron transmission or high-risk countries will only be allowed to enter Malaysia through KLIA and Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) will have to prepare a special gate for those flights, he added.

He said airlines were responsible for identifying travellers from the countries involved and their information must be submitted to the KLIA Health Office to facilitate their arrival.

Khairy added that the MOH would continue to monitor the development of the new variant at all times and if more stringent measures are needed, it will make an announcement when a decision is made.

"The measures I announced earlier are temporary until we found out more about the variant of concern. If it is found that this variant does not threaten public health in Malaysia, we will loosen the restrictions," he said.

-- BERNAMA