COVID-19: WHO says travel ban not sustainable to stem spread of virus

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared that travel bans cannot be kept up indefinitely in a bid to stem the spread of COVID-19.

WHO in a statement on Monday said that travel restrictions were only useful when combined with a wide range of other measures to detect and break chains of transmission.

The health organisation however urged countries to adopt comprehensive strategies based on local knowledge of where the virus is spreading.

READ ALSO: Over 10,000 African health workers infected by COVID-19 —WHO

“Continuing to keep international borders sealed is not necessarily a sustainable strategy for the world’s economy, for the world’s poor, or for anybody else,” Michael Ryan, WHO emergencies director, told journalists in a virtual briefing.

This came after the British government informed that it is watching the COVID-19 disease situation in Germany and France closely and continuously reviewing the situation in popular holiday destinations.

This was revealed on Sunday by a junior health minister when asked about widening quarantine for Spain, who also added that the move was to monitor the spread of the deadly disease.

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