Controller of the PNG COVID-19 National Pandemic Response, David Manning has issued 10 new pandemic measures, which comes into effect today, Wednesday February 16, 2022.
The key changes to the measures are mainly in the international and domestic travel and social measures. Under the new measures, approvals are no longer required to enter PNG for international travels.
Tourists may now travel to PNG without pandemic approvals. However all persons must still be fully vaccinated to travel into the country, unless they are under 18 years of age or are Papua New Guinea citizens.
A person is considered fully vaccinated if they have had the recommended number of doses for the vaccine as listed in Schedule 2, within the past 6 months; or they have had the recommended number of doses for the vaccine, as listed in Schedule 2 and they have had a booster vaccine.
All persons travelling to PNG must have a valid COVID-19 test within 72 hours prior to their original port of departure but children under five years of age are exempted from testing.
All people arriving into PNG will still be tested for COVID-19 upon arrival.
If a person has tested positive for COVID-19 within the last three months, a medical certificate from a registered medical practitioner from the country of departure must certify that the person is no longer infectious for COVID-19. However, the individual must test prior to leaving their port of departure within 72 hours and be tested on arrival.
According to Controller Manning, there shall be no quarantine for any person, except for persons who tests positive upon arrival, who shall be quarantined for 7 days and it is the responsibility of travel operators to make sure that a person has the necessary documents to board an aircraft/vessel to travel to PNG.
He said for domestic travel, no person may fly if they are symptomatic for COVID-19 and all travelers must have their temperature checked by airline staff and no person may travel if their temperature registers at or over 37.5C (except for medivac and emergency flights).
In addition, all passengers must complete a Department of Health form, which is to be submitted to the Provincial Health Authority on arrival.
Meantime, the changes to the social measures include public gatherings to be restricted to 100 people only however religious gatherings, schools, educational institutions, markets and shopping centers and political gatherings are exempted.
Even so, these gathering must observe and comply with the Niupela Pasin. All religious and political organisations are required to develop standard operating safety procedures for COVID-19. The public is expected to continue to observe no sale of alcohol on Friday, Saturday or Sunday nationwide and COVID-19 restrictions no longer apply to public transport.