President Mnangagwa: “We’re Not Banning Foreigners From Coming To Zimbabwe”

President Emmerson Mnangagwa has said that Zimbabwe has not banned foreign nationals from visiting Zimbabwe.

He said that the Southern African country was only ‘discouraging’ travellers from coming to Zimbabwe at this juncture due to the coronavirus.

Mnangagwa was responding to a question from members of the media who wanted to know why Zimbabwe was not closing its borders.

Speaking on Tuesday in a live broadcast in which he outlined a cocktail measures Zimbabwe is taking to prevent the spread on the virus into Zimbabwe, Mnangagwa said:

Regarding people coming from abroad, we are discouraging, we have not banned, we are discouraging those people to come to Zimbabwe or our people travelling to high-risk countries, but if we receive any travellers from those countries, we quarantine them for 14 days [at the port of entry] before we allow them to mingle in Zimbabwe.

He also announced that the country’s main borders remained open while “screening, testing, and other World Health Organisation recommended measures will be enforced vigorously.”

Zimbabwe is yet to register any case of the virus but the rate at which confirmed cases are ballooning in neighbouring South Africa is causing stomach cramp to Zimbabweans, including authorities.