Community health risks of restarting international flights in the pacific island countries and territories
Abstract
In many of the economies in the Pacific Island Countries and Territories, the COVID-19 pandemic only arrived in 2022 with comparatively a low deaths and hospitalisation impact. This could be as a result of the lessons learned from the nations that encountered the virus earlier. The hospitality and Tourism industries in the Pacific Island Countries and Territories have traditionally been reliant on international travel and were heavily impacted by the international ban of flights during the pandemic. This and a few other factors have contributed to the drive to re-start international flights, especially after an acceptable number of nationwide vaccination have been completed. However, the vaccination drive has faced issues like vaccine hesitancy and anti-vaccine efforts in various parts of the pacific leading to low vaccination rates in some areas. This report reviews the low vaccination rates in some of the Pacific Island Countries and Territories and provides a risk exposure profile against a potential COVID-19 resurgence or similar strain of the virus as a result of the resumption of international travel into the region.
How to Cite This Article
Michael Yemoh, Vicky Yemoh, Marie Passi-Westerlund, Darren Michael Magele (2022). Community health risks of restarting international flights in the pacific island countries and territories . International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Growth Evaluation (IJMRGE), 3(5), 35-39.