Tag: travel restrictions

  • About 830,000 Pakistanis left the country in 2022 in search of better jobs

    About 830,000 Pakistanis left the country in 2022 in search of better jobs

    The Bureau of Immigration and Overseas Employment (BE&OE) has reported a historic surge in emigrants seeking overseas employment in 2022, with a staggering 829,549 individuals registering for job opportunities abroad. Syed Agha Rafiullah, Parliamentary Secretary for Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development (OPHRD), presented this data to the National Assembly on Wednesday, shedding light on the nation’s growing interest in international job markets.

    Rafiullah went on to explain that although 12.45 million Pakistani workers had registered for overseas employment opportunities since 1971, the COVID-19 pandemic had significantly impacted emigration numbers in 2020 and 2021. Only 224,705 and 286,648 Pakistani emigrants had been recorded in those years, respectively.

    To combat this decline, the government is actively pursuing a diversification strategy, seeking new international employment markets for its workforce. In this regard, the government has already established statements of intent on migration and mobility with Greece and the United Kingdom, and is hopeful of signing a similar agreement with Germany soon.

    Moreover, the ministry is currently in talks with 12 nations, including Denmark, Belgium, Germany, Greece, Italy, Iran, Lebanon, Kuwait, Libya, Romania, Portugal, and Uzbekistan, to sign memorandums of understanding (MoUs) on personnel export. In addition, 24 social welfare attachés have been deployed to 16 countries to explore new opportunities for Pakistani labor.

    The government is committed to providing Pakistani emigrants with the necessary training in line with the host country’s labor market requirements, as determined by the host country’s Labour Market Analysis (LMA). These measures reflect the government’s proactive approach in promoting overseas employment and ensuring its workforce’s sustainable livelihood.

  • Unvaccinated Novak Djokovic to miss US Open

    Unvaccinated Novak Djokovic to miss US Open

    Tennis player Novak Djokovic said that he will not be able to attend the US Open in New York City due to his unwillingness to take the COVID-19 vaccination.

    The twenty-one time Grand Slam champion Djokovic stated on Thursday that he will remain in “good shape and positive spirit and wait for an opportunity to compete again.”

    The final Grand Slam will begin next week.

    “Sadly, I will not be able to travel to NY this time for US Open. Thank you #NoleFam for your messages of love and support,” Djokovic wrote on Twitter.

    Although the US has relaxed COVID-19 regulations on a domestic level, visitors who are not US citizens or permanent residents must still be completely vaccinated before boarding a flight into the nation. In June, the United States eliminated testing requirements for overseas travellers.

    Djokovic competed at the US Open last year, reaching the men’s singles final. The virus was deemed a bigger public health danger at the time, although the US simply required testing rather than vaccination for entrance at the time.

    Djokovic sparked outrage earlier this year when his visa was revoked shortly after arriving in Melbourne to participate in the Australian Open. He already clarified that he will not take the COVID-19 vaccination, even if it meant missing out on some matches.

  • UN chief condemns travel restrictions, calls it ‘travel apartheid’

    UN chief condemns travel restrictions, calls it ‘travel apartheid’

    United Nations (UN) Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres said on Wednesday that a travel ban imposed because of the Covid pandemic that cuts off any one country or region as “not only deeply unfair and punitive – they are ineffective.”, report Geo News.

    Guterres said that tests should continually be performed on travelers to reduce the threat of transmission in other parts of the world.

    He further added, “We have the instruments to have safe travel. Let’s use those instruments to avoid this kind, of allow me to say, travel apartheid, which I think is unacceptable.”

    The new variant of the coronavirus, which was previously identified as B.1.1.529 infection was reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) from South Africa on November 24 and named it Omicron.

    Several countries, including Pakistan, have completely banned flights from some countries in Africa.

    In African countries, the rate of vaccination was recorded as very low which Guterres has previously alarmed the world about. The main reason for the lack of vaccination was the inequality distribution of vaccines and low immunisation rates which became “a breeding ground for variants.”

    The annual meeting was also held between the United Nation and African Union to solve the concern of the travel ban.

    Speaking from the Joint-Conference with UN Secretary-General, African Union Commission Chair Moussa Faki Mahamat also said that the travel ban cannot be justified.

  • Deadly Omicron-new variant of Covid, raises alarm

    The new variant of the coronavirus was reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) from South Africa on November 24. It was declared a new variant “of concern” and named it Omicron, reports the BBC.

    On Friday, this variant was identified as the B.1.1.529 infection which was collected from a specimen on November 9. The cases in the majority of the provinces of South Africa were found to be increasing drastically. Only 24 per cent of the population of South Africa received the vaccination. The situation in the southern Africa region is alarming as the new variant, Omicron also emerged in Botswana, Belgium, Hong Kong, and Israel.
    “This variant has been detected at faster rates than previous surges in infection, suggesting that this variant may have a growth advantage,” the WHO said in a statement.

    Several countries banned or restricted travel to and from southern Africa including Australia, Japan, India, Iran, and Brazil. United Kingdom (UK) also restricted travelers from South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Lesotho, and Eswatini unless they are UK or Irish nationals.

    Experts also claimed that it is too early to confirm the impact of the variant on vaccinated people and the rate of transmission.

    United States of America (USA) Infectious Disease Chief Dr Anthony Fauci said, “Until it’s properly tested. We don’t know whether or not it evades the antibodies that protect you against the virus.”

  • VIDEO: Emirates ‘flight attendant’ on top of Burj Khalifa to celebrate UK travel rules change

    VIDEO: Emirates ‘flight attendant’ on top of Burj Khalifa to celebrate UK travel rules change

    Emirates shared a 32-second clip of a woman in their airline cabin crew uniform standing on top of the Burj Khalifa to celebrate the removal of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) from the UK’s Red List.

    In the video, the woman can be seen holding boards that read: “Moving the UAE to the UK Amber List has made us feel on top of the world.” The camera then pans out to reveal that the crew member is at the tip of the tallest building in the world, Dubai’s Burj Khalifa, which stands at 830 meters.

    The brave ‘flight attendant’ was played by skydiver and stuntwoman Nicole Smith-Ludvik. She expressed her gratitude on Instagram, “This is, without a doubt, one of the most amazing and exciting stunts I’ve ever done. A big shoutout to Emirates Airlines for your creative marketing idea! It was a pleasure being a part of the team.”

    The shoot was carried out with the help of a helicopter and drones.

    Nicole was required to stand on the top for hours and the stunt required a vast amount of planning and safety measures to go ahead, as per sources.

    Last week, the British government announced that the UAE and Bahrain will be removed from the UK’s travel Red List. The airline will soon resume its services in the United Kingdom.

    Unvaccinated passengers arriving from Amber List countries need to isolate for 10 days upon their arrival but can be released after five days with a negative test result. However, those who have been fully vaccinated do not have to self-isolate but must provide a negative Covid-19 test within two days of arrival.

  • Australian man escapes quarantine using bedsheets

    Australian man escapes quarantine using bedsheets

    A man in Perth, Australia, escaped mandatory quarantine in a hotel room by using a rope made of tied together bedsheets from a fourth-floor window, reports Reuters.

    He arrived in Perth from Brisbane but was told to leave the state within 48 hours, failing to get a mandatory pass before travel, and was sent to a hotel. However, he fled in the middle of the night but was caught and charged with failure to comply with a direction and providing false information.

    Last week, the Western Australia Police Force shared images on their official Facebook account, showing his escape strategy, and informed that he was arrested later and tested Covid-19 negative.

    As per reports, Travis Jay Myles appeared in the Perth Magistrates Court via an audio link. The report added that he did not apply for bail and will remain in custody until early August when his 14-day quarantine period ends.

    G2G passes registration and declaration prior to entry is mandatory for all travelers in Western Australia. The process will declare where the individual has been in the 14 days before their entry and whether they have any Covid symptoms or not.

    More than half of Australia is in lockdown and restrictions have been imposed to stop the spread of the Delta variant.

    Moreover, the vaccination process is quite slow as only 11 per cent of the population is fully vaccinated. The main cause of this is that Australians under 60 are advised to get the Pfizer vaccine, but supplies are very limited.