"We have the problem of public health, restaurants, tourist developments receive people, customers, tourists, we must safeguard the workers themselves and make recommendations such as occupational health, ways of protecting accommodation," said the Secretary of State for Tourism, José Alves Primo.
For the minister, although Angola does not yet register any positive case of the new coronavirus, tour operators must take due precautions, under penalty of the ministerial body and other entities imposing restrictive measures that are recommended by national and international health entities.
Speaking on the sidelines of a clarification meeting on the Contingency Plan for the Control of Covid-19, aimed at tour operators, in Luanda, the Secretary of State acknowledged the reduction in the flow of tourists due to the pandemic.
"There was a reduction [in tourists], because shipments at the airport decreased, here we had to cancel the cruise ship that was bound for our national ports and is already a reduction", he said.
Regarding the reduction of revenues, as a result of the reduced demand in the sector, José Alves Primo pointed out the need to "safeguard, in the first instance, public health", but in relation to revenues, it cannot be avoided.
"The calculations and forecasts are being made by the competent bodies, it is a worldwide concern, the cooling of the economy is evident and tourism will be equally affected", noted the Angolan government official.
The country develops contingency plans and control measures at the main points of entry of the country and decreed, from 3 March, the ban on the entry of foreign citizens from China, the center of the Covid-19 epidemic, South Korea, Iran, Italy.
