Published 7 October 2020
Buckie Got It, St. Kitts and Nevis News Source
FAMILIES TO REUNITE FOLLOWING THE REOPENING OF THE ST. KITTS AND NEVIS BORDERS
Basseterre, St. Kitts, October 07, 2020 (SKNIS): The phased reopening of the St. Kitts and Nevis borders to regional and international travel will help to boost the local economy by stimulating jobs in the tourism sector, essentially closed since late March 2020. Officials also expect the move to reunite families separated for the past seven months.
St. Kitts and Nevis closed its borders on March 28, 2020, to restrict the importation and spread of COVID-19.
“Several of our persons were literally stranded abroad,” Prime Minister Dr. the Honourable Timothy Harris said on Tuesday’s (October 06) edition of the Leadership Matters.
In the following weeks after the border closing, health officials successfully flattened the curve of the novel coronavirus. This allowed chartered flights to transport nationals and other special groups, such as international students undertaking studies, to the island.
Persons who are still overseas will be able to return to their homeland following the border reopening on October 31.
“So, part of the reason really [for reopening the borders] is to bring that comfort, to reunite families, to get people back home to attend to their jobs etc. Those are some of the reasons that propelled us to determine that the time had come,” Prime Minister Harris stated.
The prime minister added that the health and safety of the population remains a priority for the government and strongly encouraged all persons to adhere to the established protocols designed to protect against the spread of COVID-19.
