Africa Regulatory ENSight Issue 3 Of 2022 | 06 Apr 2022 Issue 3 Of 2022

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Press Release: New Changes at Ports of Entry

Issued on 18 March 2022 by the Ministry of Health and Wellness.

The Press Release provides that due to discordant period for taking booster shots between Botswana and other countries, and for purposes of smoothing international travel:

• the definition of being fully vaccinated in Botswana will no longer include a booster shot;
• having completed the primary vaccine series will be considered sufficient for one to be allowed entry, without the need to present a negative PCR test result; and
• travellers who are partially vaccinated or not vaccinated at all will be required to present a negative 72-hour PCR test result and undergo COVID-19 testing at port of entry at own cost.

Applies to multiple sectors

Public Health (Prevention of Introduction or Spread of COVID-19) Order, 2022, Statutory Instrument No. 22 of 2022

Published in the Botswana Government Gazette Extraordinary Vol. LX, No. 31 dated 18 March 2022.

The Order:

• repeals the Public Health (Prevention of Introduction or Spread of COVID-19) Order, 2022, Statutory Instrument No. 12 of 2022; and
• provides that:
  •    a person who wishes to enter into Botswana shall, at the port of entry, on presenting proof that he or she is fully vaccinated, be allowed entry;
  •  where the abovementioned proof is not presented, a person shall, on entry, present a negative COVID-19 PCR test result, or any other test result as the Director may determine, not older than 72 hours from the time of testing, and at his or her own cost, be required to undertake immediate COVID-19 PCR testing; and
  •    a person who refuses to be subjected to the provisions of this Order commits an offence and is liable to a fine not exceeding BWP5 000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year, or to both.

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Effective from 00:00 on 16 March 2022 to 24:00 on 15 April 2022.

Published in the Namibia Government Gazette No. 7765 dated 15 March 2022.

The Government Notice amends the Public Health COVID-19 General Regulations, Government Notice No. 91 of 30 April 2021:

• to repeal regulation 3 which required every person to wear a mask whenever he or she is at or in a public place;
• in relation to a prohibited gathering, which means a group of more than 1 000 persons;
• to require the head of an institution and every manager or person in control of any business, operation and activity that is permitted to operate under the Regulations and which renders services to members of the public on the basis of seated services, including businesses that sell liquor or food for on-consumption, to arrange chairs or tables in a manner that they are not less than one metre apart; and
• to provide that a person may enter Namibia if such person at the time of entering Namibia presents to an authorised person a valid:
  • negative SARS-CoV2 polymerase chain reaction ("PCR") rest result from the country of departure, which result:
    • is not older than 72 hours calculated from the date that the sample for testing was taken; and
    • was issued by a laboratory that is certified in the country of issue to issue SARS-CoV-2 PCR test results;
  • de-isolation certificate, not older than three months from the date of discharge from isolation, issued by a health authority; in the country of departure; or
  • vaccination certificate:
    • showing that the persons concerned are fully vaccinated against COVID-19; and
    • issued by a person or authority certified or authorised to administer COVID-19 vaccines and to issue vaccination certificates in any country.

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The Regulations:

• set out measures to be taken in the workplace, including in occupations with the highest COVID-19 risk, to protect workers and mitigate the spread of COVID-19;
• provide that an employer may acquire testing kits to test workers at the workplace on the first day of the worker becoming aware that he or she was in close contact with a person who tested positive for COVID-19, and require an employer who fails to comply to subject its workers to be tested at a health centre; and
• set out procedures that an employer may take in relation to employees who do not comply with COVID-19 safety measures at work, including:
  • disciplinary action against any employee who refuses or fails to comply with social distancing or hygiene measures;
  • following a fair procedure, dismissing an employee who repeatedly refuses or fails to comply with the employer's COVID-19 measures, or where a one-off failure is particularly serious; and
  • provide that non-compliance with an instruction to selfisolate or quarantine from the Public Health Authority may be considered a disciplinary matter even if an employee is not physically present at the workplace.

The Press Communiqué provides that:

• the CBS has closed the access period to the Private Sector (MSMEs) Relief Scheme and Private Sector (Large Enterprises) Relief Scheme in line with the CBS' Unwinding Strategy - COVID 19 Policy and Relief Measures;
• from the reopening of the schemes on 1 February 2022 until 23 March 2022, the commercial banks, Development Bank of Seychelles and Seychelles Credit Union had not received any new applications under both schemes; and
• notwithstanding the closure of the schemes, private sector businesses being impacted by the effects of the pandemic can seek assistance from their respective financial institutions which have reinstated the provision of credit facilities, in line with the accommodative monetary policy stance adopted by the CBS.