Unguja. Visitors travelling to Zanzibar will now have to pay an insurance fee of $44 (about Sh118,360) with effect from September 1. The fee will cover them for up to 92 days during their stay on the island.
Speaking to The Citizen, the minister of Finance, Dr Saada Mkuya Salum, explained that this new arrangement aims to enhance services for visitors to Zanzibar.
“The insurance will cover various aspects that have previously been problematic for visitors, such as health, loss of baggage, accidents, emergency evacuation, loss of passports, and even repatriation of remains in case of death,” Dr Mkuya said.
She also mentioned that the government will assign dedicated staff to manage this insurance coverage to streamline service provision.
She emphasised that requiring visitors to pay for insurance is not unique to Zanzibar, as it is a common practice in many other countries.
“This is not a new concept; when we travel elsewhere, we also pay for travel insurance,” she noted.
The insurance coverage will be provided by the Zanzibar Insurance Corporation, a government-owned entity, and will not take into consideration whether one has another travel policy from elsewhere.
Prior to this, travel insurance was not mandatory in Tanzania and other East African countries. However, the announcement has caused concern in the tourism industry, which is a cornerstone of Zanzibar’s economy.
Tour operators who spoke to The Citizen fear that the additional cost may make the island a more expensive destination.
“With all the good intentions that the government has in enhancing visitor experience on the island, this could drive our visitors away because of a chain of requirements that they have to abide by,” said one operator who preferred anonymity.
This new development comes at a time when Zanzibar has announced that it is targeting some 800,000 visitors in 2024.
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Africa: Rwanda Gets a Grip Of Marburg, But Mpox ‘Not Yet Under Control’
Monrovia — The Rwanda Minister of State responsible for Health, Dr. Yvan Butera, cautioned that while the country is beginning to see positive signals in its fight against the Marburg virus, the outbreak is “not yet over”. He, however, expressed hope that “we are headed in that direction”. The minister said the epidemiology trend, since the disease was first discovered in the country more than a month ago, is moving towards fewer cases.
Dr. Butera, who was giving updates during an online briefing yesterday, said in the past two weeks, only two deaths were recorded while 14 people recovered from the disease. He said Rwanda was expanding its testing capacity with 16,000 people already inoculated against the disease.
The priority right now, Butera said, is “rapid testing and detection”.
Marburg is a highly virulent disease transmitted through human-to-human contact or contact with an infected animal. The fatality rate of cases, which has varied over the period, is more than 50%, according to the World Health Organization. WHO said the highest number of new confirmed cases in Rwanda were reported in the first two weeks of the outbreak. There’s been a “sharp decline” in the last few weeks, with the country now tackling over 60 cases.
At Thursday’s briefing, a senior official of the Africa Centers for Disease Control, Dr. Ngashi Ngongo, said mpox – the other infectious disease outbreak that countries in the region are fighting – was been reported in 19 countries, with Mauritius being the latest country to confirm a case. He said although no new cases have been recorded in recent weeks in several countries where outbreaks occurred previously – including Cameroon, South Africa, Guinea, and Gabon – Uganda confirmed its first Mpox death. This, he said, is one of two fatalities reported outside Central Africa.
Dr. Ngashi revealed that there was an increase in cases in Liberia and Uganda. He said mpox cases were still on an upward trend.
“The situation is not yet under control.”
Source: allafrica.com
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