CHAPTER ONE

Introduction

COVID-19 pandemic was declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) by the World Health Organization (WHO) on 30 January 2021. Since then, the total number of covid-19 cases has continued to increase at an alarming rate in several countries worldwide. After confirmation of the first cases, Cameroon launched the Incident Management System (IMS). Several measures were adopted to combat the disease, including restricting travel and economic activities (e.g. closing workplaces and schools, banning gatherings of over ten people, limiting travel) and observing protective measures such as social distancing, hand washing, wearing masks, etc. The Cameroonian government also prepared a covid-19 preparedness and response plan to address the crisis.

This is chapter consists of introduction, statement of the problem, objectives and questions, research hypothesis, , significance of the study. The chapter ends with the organization or structure of the long essay.

1.1Background to the study

In late December 2019, an outbreak of a mysterious pneumonia characterized by fever, dry cough, and fatigue, and occasional gastrointestinal symptoms happened in a seafood wholesale wet market, the Hunan Seafood Wholesale Market, in Wuhan, Hubei, China. The initial outbreak was reported in the market in December 2019 and involved about 66% of the staff there. The market was shut down on January 1, 2020, after the announcement of an epidemiologic alert by the local health authority on December 31, 2019. However, in the following month (January) thousands of people in China, including many provinces (such as Hubei, Zhejiang, Guangdong, Henan, Hunan, etc.) and cities (Beijing and Shanghai) were attacked by the rampant spreading of the disease. Furthermore, the disease traveled to other countries, such as Thailand, Japan, Republic of Korea, Viet Nam, Germany, United States, and Singapore. The first case reported in our country was on January 21, 2019. As of February 6, 2020, a total of 28,276 confirmed cases with 565 deaths globally were documented by WHO, involving at least 25 countries. The pathogen of the outbreak was later identified as a novel beta-coronavirus, named 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) and recalled to our mind the terrible memory of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS-2003, caused by another beta-coronavirus) that occurred 17 years ago.

The continent has also been witnessing the occurrence of dreadful disease infections like the Ebola, HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis and now the corona virus infection. The Covid-19 infection in Africa unlike in the developed and economically advanced countries has not had the same appreciations and effects. Though the pandemic is unbiased, the developed and the economically advanced countries like China, Thailand, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Vietnam, Taiwan, Nepal, and the United States which registered the first cases of Covid-19 carried out community reconfiguration of the sanitary system as a means to curb the effects of the virus; whereas in Africa, it was more of an idle debate.

Prior to Covid-19, countries had very flexible and routine health checks as pertains travelling to their country, but with the advent of covid-19, countries have had to implement travel bans, quarantine periods amongst others.

Travel restrictions have had a significant impact on international travelers. Most countries around the world have implemented travel restrictions in order to contain the spread of the virus, which has caused major disruptions for air travel. Airlines have cancelled flights, limited the number of passengers allowed on board, and required travelers to provide proof of health status before boarding. Additionally, many countries have imposed quarantine periods or mandatory testing requirements upon arrival. These measures have created additional costs and challenges that travelers must face when traveling abroad.

Quarantines have had a major impact on international travel. Many countries have implemented quarantine periods of varying duration upon arrival, which can significantly increase the cost and inconvenience of traveling abroad.

1.2 Statement of Problem

Considering the continuous evolution of the covid-19 pandemic worldwide, Government continue indicate that travel restriction can be ease, adjusted or tightened at any time. The general problem of this research is to be able to analyze the consequences or effect of the covid19 pandemic. This fast changing – entry requirement remain a measure challenge as immigration procedure may differ significantly from destination to destination. Indeed travel restriction has failed to prevent the spread of covid-19

Although the prevention and control measures such as travel restriction and screening at airport have slow down the rate of COVID 19 importation, it is not sufficient enough to contain the spread across the globe. The aim of this research is to examine the effect or impact of covid-19 and it challenges with regards to international travel restriction and propose possible solution. It was due to this that the following research questions were raised.

Research questions

What are the effects of covid-19 in international relation from the vintage of travel restriction?

What are the challenges of covid-19 in international relation from the vintage of travel restriction?

What are the remedies of covid-19 9 in international relation from the vintage of travel restriction?

1.3 Research Objectives

What has been the impact or effect of covid-19 on international travel?

What are the challenges of covid-19  on international relation and international travellers?

What strategies can be implemented to help restore international travel post covid-19?

1.3.1 General objective

This study is to examine the effects of covid19, to investigate the challenges of covid19 and evaluate the remedies of the covid19 pandemic.

1.3.2 Specific objective

To analyze the impact of covid-19 on the global airline industry with a focus on international travel

To assess the challenges of covid19 on international relation and international travellers

Explore strategies that can be implemented to help restore international air travel in the light of covid-19