Countries which have reached satisfactory vaccination rates should reopen borders and relax quarantine requirements, Airports Council International said after sustained losses were predicted in 2021 for Asia Pacific and Middle East airports.
56 percent passenger loss is forecasted for Asia Pacific which is reeling under lockdowns, travel and quarantine restrictions. The figure for Middle East is 70 percent.
The two regions are predicted to lose over 2.3 billion passengers while the revenue would decrease by US$ 34 billion in Asia Pacific and by US$ 11 billion in Middle East by the end of 2021.
“A repeat of the dismal 2021 can be avoided for 2022 if more governments can adopt the risk-based, pragmatic approaches recommended by ICAO and the WHO,” Stefano Baronci, Director General, ACI Asia-Pacific said.
He also remarked that in order to boost international travel and economic growth, countries like Singapore, Thailand, Fiji, Maldives, several Middle East and European countries and the United States are already following the recommendations of ICAO and WHO.
