Gambia’s Health Minister
By Buba Gagigo
The Gambia has updated its Covid-19 entry requirements in line with the status of its COVID-19 response.
The new announcement by the Ministry of Health in a statement on Wednesday has put travellers into two categories- Category I and Category II.
“Category I: Fully vaccinated Passengers; Passengers who have been fully vaccinated do not need a PCR test to enter into the Gambia. However, if such individuals have signs or symptoms similar to those of COVID-19, they will be required to undergo Rapid Diagnostic Test for COVID-19 at the airport.
“Category II: Non Vaccinated or Partially Vaccinated individuals; All these individuals will need a negative PCR test report valid within 72hrs for entry into the country. Passengers from countries considered as hotspots for the delta variant will in addition undergo a Rapid Diagnostic Test at the airport upon arrival. List of such countries will be periodically updated,” the statement stated the categories.
The statement added that all departing passengers would be required to adhere to COVID-19 testing requirements for the destination countries following confirmation by the Port Health Officers or airline representatives as might be published.
The statement has also listed the United Kingdom, USA, Denmark, Germany, Turkey, France, India, Sweden, Canada, Switzerland, Spain, Netherlands, Italy, Belgium, Japan, Ireland, Australia, Mexico, Portugal, South Africa, Finland and Slovenia as hotspot countries as per the country’s national Covid guidelines