Prime Minister Gaston Browne says Antigua and Barbuda is taking a “very conservative position” on incoming flights from Nigeria as the country strengthens health screening measures amid heightened Ebola concerns in parts of Central and East Africa.
Speaking on Pointe FM on Saturday, Browne said the government has decided that Antigua may not receive the first scheduled Air Peace flight from Lagos, with the aircraft instead likely traveling directly to Barbados before passengers destined for Antigua are transported onward by LIAT.
“We’re very concerned about the situation, the heightened situation, Ebola,” Browne said, explaining that authorities are reluctant at this time to facilitate transit visa waivers connected to the flights.
The Prime Minister said Antigua and Barbuda is reactivating protocols first used during the COVID-19 pandemic, including infrared thermal scanners at the airport to detect passengers with elevated temperatures and enhanced monitoring of travelers arriving from affected regions.
“All of the other international protocols that have been established to deal with individuals travelling out of Africa, all those will be put in place here,” Browne said.
Health Minister Michael Joseph announced Friday that the government would recommend temporary travel restrictions for people arriving from Ebola-affected areas in Central and East Africa as part of wider public health preparedness measures.
Browne said Antigua’s cautious approach was also influenced by a controversial situation in late 2022 and early 2023 involving migrants from Cameroon who traveled to Antigua via Nigeria on charter flights operated by a now-defunct airline linked to the government.
“We got burnt there, so we’ve been a little cautious,” Browne said.
He recalled that authorities initially believed the passengers were tourists but later discovered many intended to continue illegally toward the United States.
“They ended up being conflict migrants who were trying to get into the United States,” Browne said, adding that Antigua eventually suspended the flights to avoid accusations the country was facilitating trafficking.
The Prime Minister stressed that Antigua and Barbuda remains committed to strengthening air links between Africa and the Caribbean and said the country had been “at the forefront” of establishing those routes, including partnerships involving Air Peace and LIAT.
However, he said the current Ebola situation required extra caution.
“In the circumstances of the heightened Ebola situation and so on, we have chosen to take a very conservative position,” Browne said.
The Prime Minister acknowledged that screening alone may not eliminate all risks because Ebola symptoms may not appear during the incubation period.
“The problem with it is during the incubation period you may not be able to capture it,” Browne said. “You may not have the symptoms at the time.”
He confirmed that approximately 25 passengers arriving in Barbados are still expected to travel onward to Antigua and Barbuda, where authorities intend to closely monitor them.
As part of the response, Browne said the government has reactivated the Infectious Disease Centre to isolate any suspected cases if necessary and carry out contact tracing.
The Prime Minister also revealed that Antigua recently recorded two imported malaria cases, one of which resulted in a death, though officials found no evidence of local spread after conducting contact tracing.
“We had two cases of malaria. These were imported, and one of the individuals unfortunately succumbed to his illness,” Browne said.
He warned that any outbreak of Ebola in Antigua and Barbuda could severely damage the country’s tourism industry.
“If we have a spread of anything like Ebola here, you can imagine the impact on tourism,” Browne said. “So we have to be very, very cautious.”