The fact that Fiji has been declared a low risk country for travel by the United States government is interesting.
It actually places us on a high pedestal that many countries are hoping for.
The US global health COVID-19 travel advisory urges citizens to avoid all international travel because of the pandemic but says countries such as Fiji, New Zealand and Thailand had been categorised at low risk level by the Centre for Disease Control (CDC).
It stated: “CDC recommends that people at increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19 talk to their healthcare providers before travelling to Fiji.”
“COVID-19 risk in Fiji is low. Over the last 28 days, new cases of COVID-19 in Fiji decreased or stabilised.”
The CDC states policies in Fiji may require “you to be tested for COVID-19 before you are allowed to enter the country”.
“If you test positive on arrival, you may be required to isolate for a period of time.
“You may even be prevented from returning to the United States, as scheduled. You might consider getting tested before your trip.”
The advisory comes at a time when tension is high in many countries around the world.
They are experiencing a second wave which, for some of them, has been quite bad. As of yesterday, the World Health Organization announced 253,409 new cases over a 24 hour period.
In that same period, there were 5719 new deaths recorded around the world.
The US, according to CNN, is by far the worst affected country with more than five million cases and 160,000 deaths so far. Closer to home, ABC news reported on Monday that as of Sunday, New Zealand marked 100 days without community transmission of the virus.
It reported that from the first known case imported into NZ on February 26 to the last case of community transmission detected on May 1, elimination took 65 days.
The country relied on three types of measures to fight the virus, it reported.
This included ongoing border controls to stop COVID-19 from entering the country; a lockdown and physical distancing to stop community transmission; and case-based controls using testing, contact tracing and quarantine.
Back on the homefront, Ministry of Health media liaison officer Sunil Chandra said the remaining six COVID-19 positive cases were still in isolation and recovering at the Lautoka Hospital.
The fact that we are rated as a low-risk country is encouraging.
Acknowledgment is due to all those working behind the scenes to ensure measures are in place to keep the virus at bay.
We acknowledge all our frontliners. However, our challenge is to maintain the status quo.
That means adhering to social distancing rules. It means following advice. So let’s wash our hands often with soap and water.
Let’s sneeze or cough into an elbow, or use a tissue and dispose this immediately safely.
Let’s work on cutting out handshakes and hugs, and try not to touch your face when you are out in public.
Let’s stay on course Fiji.