Iata has called for governments to apply the lessons learned from the dismantling of global connectivity in response to COVID-19 to ensure that future global health threats can be effectively managed without closing borders.
The World Health Organization has long advised that border closures are not an effective means of managing a global pandemic, with evidence seen during the pandemic proving the point. Moreover, the restart of global connectivity has been made more challenging because governments continue to favour local solutions over global standards, Iata asserts.
Constant policy changes by governments have left most of the industry little time to prepare for the ramp-up in demand for travel post-pandemic.
“It’s vital to restore public confidence in government handling of health crises and border restrictions. Much of the damage was caused, not by fear of the virus, but fear of sudden and arbitrary border restrictions imposed by authorities,” says Conrad Clifford, Iata Deputy DG.
“Understanding the significant lessons from the pandemic will be crucial to managing future health crises in a way that ensures borders should not have to close again. With air traffic now rebuilding after more than two years of crisis, three key lessons have emerged for governments.”
Lesson 1: Border measures are an ineffective global strategy
Research undertaken by OXERA/Edge Health has revealed that, even if a new COVID variant was discovered and travel restrictions were introduced immediately, this would only delay the peak of infections by a maximum of four days.
Although most major restrictions, such as total border closures and quarantines, have been removed and the world is increasingly open, governments are still making travel unnecessarily difficult, Iata believes.
Restrictions such as complicated health paperwork, COVID testing, and mask wearing are still required for travel in some jurisdictions, despite these requirements having been lifted in domestic life.
“There is no reason for measures that unnecessarily interfere with international travel and trade. We call on all countries to implement decisions that are evidence-based and consistent,” says Clifford.
Lesson 2: Balance health measures with economic, social impacts
Though the evidence for restrictions is unproven, the impacts of reduced air connectivity are clear. Politicians, therefore, must balance the economic and social benefits of air connectivity against the need for health-related travel restrictions, Iata advises.
In 2019, aviation supported nearly 40 million jobs worldwide and underpinned US$3,5trn (R55,74trn) of global GDP. And public understanding of the economic importance of air connectivity is high – 92% of travellers agree that air connectivity is critical for the economy (as measured in the latest Iata passenger survey).
During the pandemic, 87% of passengers surveyed (in September 2021) agreed that the right balance between managing COVID risks and getting the economy moving needed to be found. Social impacts were also significant.
“We urge governments to listen to WHO advice on the need to keep borders open. And we are calling for independent research into the effectiveness of policies that balance health measures with the social and economic benefits of air connectivity, with a view to agreeing a set of global recommendations for handling future health crises,” Clifford adds.
Lesson 3: Logical rules, clear communication
“Public confidence is adversely affected by arbitrary rule-making and poor or contradictory information. But throughout the pandemic, the rules and messaging around border restrictions were confusing and illogical,” a release from Iata reads.
In January 2022, some 100 000 different measures affecting international travel were in place, according to Iata. Navigating this fragmented system of measures has been confusing for travellers and caused major operational complexities for operators.
To give the public greater confidence in the predictability of travel, governments should adopt guidance for how public health measures, once introduced, will be removed, and simplify and digitise travel bureaucracy and paperwork with common standards and mutual recognition of digital health credentials.
“Already, 71% of travellers believe that they should be travelling as they did before the pandemic,” says Clifford, referring to an Iata survey.
“As the return to normal accelerates, we will be back to a world where our biggest concerns focus on the sustainable growth of aviation. But that does not mean that governments and industry should forget the lessons from this pandemic. There will be more global health threats. Applying the lessons of the COVID-19 pandemic to future health crises is the best way to ensure that the sacrifices made by millions of people were not made in vain,” Clifford emphasises.
