November 28, (THEWILL) – ANTHONY AWUNOR discusses the International Air Transport Association (IATA) solutions that will facilitate international air travel worldwide
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has called
on governments to adopt simple, predictable and practical measures to safely and efficiently facilitate the ramping-up of international travel as borders reopen.
Specifically, IATA urged governments to focus on three key areas: simplified health protocols, digital solutions to process health credentials and COVID-19 measures proportionate to risk levels with a continuous review process.
The newly released policy paper titled, ‘From Restart to Recovery: A Blueprint for Simplifying Travel’ outlines the industry’s vision to address the complexity.
Conrad Clifford, the IATA deputy director-general, says that as governments are establishing processes to re-open borders, in line with agreements at the Ministerial Declaration of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) High-Level Conference on COVID-19, the blueprint will help them with good practices and practical considerations.
He emphasises the need to move from individual border openings to the restoration of a global air transport network that can reconnect communities and facilitate economic recovery.
He says, “We must have processes in place to safely and efficiently manage the ramping-up of international travel as borders reopen. With over 18 months of pandemic operational experience and traveller feedback, we know that a laser focus on simplicity, predictability and practicality is essential. That is not the reality today.
“Over 100,000 COVID-19 related measures have been implemented by governments worldwide. This complexity is a barrier to global mobility that is exacerbated by the inconsistencies these measures have created among states”.
On the only way forward, Clifford explains, “Travel is important. Pre-pandemic, some 88 million livelihoods were directly connected to aviation. And the inability to travel freely by air has impacted the quality of life for billions of people. We know that travelers feel confident with the implementation of the COVID-19 safety measures. But they have clearly told us that the current travel experience needs to improve with better information, simpler processing and digital solutions.
“The Ministerial Declaration of the ICAO HLCC aligns with those of the G20 and the G7 in confirming that governments want to restore the social and economic benefits of global mobility. For that, industry and government must work together with a common vision of processes that are convenient for travelers, effective for governments and practical for the industry”.
The blueprint emphasises simple, consistent, and predictable simplified health protocols. Its key recommendations include removal of all travel barriers (including quarantine and testing) for those fully vaccinated with a World Health Organisation-approved vaccine and enabling quarantine-free travel for non-vaccinated travelers with a negative pre-departure antigen test result.
These recommendations, according to the IATA, are supported by public opinion research on travelers, which revealed that 80 per cent believe that vaccinated people should be able to travel freely, while 81 per cent believe that testing before travel is an acceptable alternative to vaccination, just as 73 per cent believe that quarantine is not necessary for vaccinated travellers.
Furthermore, the IATA has suggested digital solutions to processing heath credentials. The body believes that travel health credentials (vaccination or testing certificates) should be handled digitally to enable travelers to complete the process in advance. This way, they can arrive at the airport ready to travel. This will facilitate automated check-in processes and reduce airport queuing and wait times.
About the Author
Anthony Awunor, is a business correspondent who holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Linguistics (UNILAG). He is also an alumnus of the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT), Zaria Kaduna State. He lives in Lagos.
