Over 1,000 foreigners evacuated from Uganda
Sent back home. Europeans and North Americans get cleared at Entebbe International Airport before they were evacuated to their respective countries on Friday. PHOTO BY JOSEPH KIGGUNDU
What you need to know:
- Government has advised that those people trapped in foreign countries should remain there until the situation normalises.
Those who die abroad are either buried there, or their caskets have to wait until the current pandemic is eliminated. - However, last week, a dead body of one of the Ugandans whose identities could not be verified was bought back using one of the cargo planes that touched Entebbe Airport. It is not clear if the person succumbed to the Covid-19 or died of other diseases. It was not also clear from which country the person died.
More than 1,000 foreigners working in Uganda have been evacuated since government closed Entebbe airport to international travels following the coronavirus lockdown.
President Museveni closed Entebbe International Airport and Uganda’s borders to both inbound and outbound passenger traffic on March 22, a day after the country reported its first case of Covid-19.
Since then, eight evacuation flights have taken place, with the latest foreigners evacuated last Friday. In the latest evacuation, 175 passengers were taken aboard Ethiopian Airlines to Europe and America. They included 75 Swedish nationals, a number of other European citizens, Canadians and Americans.
The Swedish ambassador to Uganda, Per Lindgärde, said the decision to evacuate the nationals from Uganda was taken by the country’s Foreign Affairs ministry at home following the global outbreak.
“This is a decision the Foreign Affairs minister has taken in Stockholm to call back the family members and reduce the number of embassy staff from the countries of sub-Saharan Africa, as well as some countries from Asia and South America as well,” he said.
Mr Lindgärde said the evacuations are temporary measures and those who have travelled back home will be allowed to return as soon as the situation normalises.
“It depends on how the situation plays out, but it is a temporary relocation. I am sure they are coming back but I do not know when,” he said.
Mr Nouamane Zahouani, the general manager of National Aviation Services, the company handling ground services at Entebbe International Airport, said since the closure of the airport, they have handled eight evacuation flights for foreigners from different countries.
“Today (Friday last week) is the 8th passenger flight from Entebbe since the airport was closed. These planes come empty without any passenger, but go back with the foreigners who have been permitted to go back to their homes,” he said.
Mr Zahouani said while inbound flights at Entebbe airport are only for cargo and UN emergency staff, outbound passenger flights take place on arrangements with operators and foreign governments that want to evacuate their citizens from Uganda.
On April 3, Qatar Airways departed from Entebbe airport with a number of US citizens after an arrangement was made with Uganda and US mission in Kampala, though the embassy officials said it was not the US government organised flight.
Plight of Ugandans abroad
While outbound passengers are allowed to depart from Entebbe on special arrangements, Uganda has shutdown the airport and the borders to its citizens trapped in foreign countries.
Government has advised that those people trapped in foreign countries should remain there until the situation normalises.
Those who die abroad are either buried there, or their caskets have to wait until the current pandemic is eliminated.
However, last week, a dead body of one of the Ugandans whose identities could not be verified was bought back using one of the cargo planes that touched Entebbe Airport. It is not clear if the person succumbed to the Covid-19 or died of other diseases. It was not also clear from which country the person died.
