CI-NEWS

Closure of EU Airspace to Cameroonians: Gov’t begs EU to reconsider Cameroon’s case

2020-07-21

No: 514

Closure of EU Airspace to Cameroonians: Gov’t begs EU to reconsider Cameroon’s case.

While Gabon and Senegal have shut their airspaces to EU countries in retaliation for a similar measure they took against nationals of several African countries, Cameroon has chosen to adopt diplomatic means to cause one of its largest partners to reconsider the closure of its airspace to its nationals in a bid to flatten the Covid-19 pandemic curve.

Top Cameroonian government officials have held a crucial in-camera meeting with Ambassadors of European Union EU member-countries accredited to Cameroon, to discuss the possibility of the EU opening up its airspace to Cameroonian travellers.

Last month, the European Union excluded Cameroon from a provisional list of countries whose nationals will travel into their territory from July 1 as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic.

The decision to exclude Cameroon was said to have been motivated by the country’s Covid-19 epidemiological situation. But Cameroon has since been on a diplomatic offensive to convince the European Union to allow its citizens travel to their countries. It is within this framework that a meeting, chaired by External Relations Minister Mbella Mbella, was held on Friday July 10 at the Audience Hall of his Ministry.

The meeting which lasted about three hours, was also attended by the Minister of Public Health, Dr Malachie Manaouda, and his colleague of Transport, Ernest Ngalle Massena Bibehe.

We learnt that the two Ministers, during the meeting, briefed the EU diplomats and gave assurances on the efforts being made, each in their respective domains, to ensure the safety of persons travelling in and out of Cameroon especially as the country is at the final stages of its plan to fully reopen its international borders.

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, the Ambassador and Head of the European Union delegation to Cameroon, Hans-Peter Schadek, did not specifically say if the EU will re-open its border to Cameroon, any time soon. The diplomat, however, stated that the EU is monitoring the situation and would review its decision depending on the unfolding of events.

“Maybe, it’s very early to talk about dates or horizons for opening, but this was a very fruitful meeting and very important for the exchange of useful information. I was particularly pleased that the Ministers of Transport and Public Health were present to update the European side on measures taken by Cameroon to; first of all respond to the Covid-19 in terms of sanitary measures, and secondly in terms of health measures taken with regard to air transport in particular,” Schadek said .

Options for opening airspace

“The Minister of Transport informed us about protocols for the airports of Yaounde and Douala. This is important information. The European Union will periodically review the situation regarding the Covid-19 pandemic in view of evaluating the options for opening access to the Schengen airspace for Cameroonians’, the diplomat added. He used the opportunity to point out that the closure of the airspace to Cameroonians is only for what he called “non-essential travels”

“We have exceptions for essential travellers like health workers, specialised workers, diplomats and other categories, which on exceptional bases, are allowed to travel for now. We share an interest in travelling: it’s our hope to see the airspace reopened,” he stated.

The closure of the EU airspace to Cameroonians has been a major preoccupation for government. It was one of the major issues which came under review during a meeting on July 1 of the inter-ministerial committee charged with piloting the national response strategy against Covid-19.

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Closure of EU Airspace to Cameroonians: Gov’t begs EU to reconsider Cameroon’s case