South Africa to restore international services from Oct

September 17, 2020: South Africa will reopen its international borders in October as the country scales down its Covid-19 lockdown restrictions.

This has been announced by president Cyril Ramaphosa, followed by the reopening on October 1 of certain land border posts, as well as the country’s three main international airports, including Johannesburg’s O.R. Tambo, Durban’s King Shaka and Cape Town.

Ramaphosa said travel would be allowed for business and leisure but may be restricted from certain countries with high infection rates. A list of countries would be published in due course.

The announcement made on September 16 was welcomed by the country’s beleaguered airline sector, which has been lobbying for months for the reopening of international travel.

“We are relieved and happy that our president has responded positively to our plea to open borders. We view this as one of the gradual steps towards resuscitating our fragile economy,” commented Zuks Ramasia, chief executive officer of the Board of Airline Representatives (BARSA), which represents foreign carriers serving the country.