Covid-19 travel update: Indonesia lifts ban on foreign arrival for tourism boost

Indonesia removes all 14 heavily-infected nations from its travel ban list, allowing travellers from countries including South Africa and the UK to enter its borders starting from Jan. 12, even as local Covid-19 infections continue to climb.

Indonesia lifted a ban on all foreign arrivals and kept the required isolation period at 7 days in a bid to keep the economy going, even as local Covid-19 infections continued to climb.

Authorities last week removed all 14 heavily-infected nations from its travel ban list, allowing travellers from countries including South Africa and the U.K. to enter its borders starting from Jan. 12, according to a statement by the Covid-19 Task Force.

With restrictions in place, “it will be difficult for cross border movements that are still needed to maintain stability including the national economic recovery,” Spokesman Wiku Adisasmito said in the statement.

The ban removal came as Southeast Asia’s biggest economy geared up for a number of international events this year, such as the MotoGP championship in March and the G-20 Summit in November that would generate more international arrivals.

Indonesia’s daily Covid case rose to 1,362 on Tuesday, the highest since Oct. 8, as the omicron strain spread across the country and the number of local transmissions exceeded its imported cases. About half of the new cases were recorded in Jakarta. Still, hospitalization rate and fatalities have remained low as vaccination coverage improved.

Health Protocols at Sports Events

Tourism Minister Sandiaga Uno said that the government will still impose strict health protocols at sports events. He responded to a statement by Dorna Sports, the organizer of the MotoGP motorbike championship, that it would not follow Indonesia’s quarantine protocols during the race.

Separately, President Joko Widodo reiterated a call for Indonesians to reduce going to public places, work from home, and avoid overseas travel over the next few weeks to avoid a spike in omicron cases that could overwhelm its health system. The government has said that cases are likely to peak in February or mid March, before they began to subside.