Kenya
Travel restrictions
International flights resumed on August 1st 2020 under Ministry of Health and Transport guidelines.
As of August 1st 2020, the Kenyan Ministry of Transport, Infrastructure, Housing, Urban Development and Public Works announced that 18 countries (Canada, South Korea, Namibia, Uganda, China, Rwanda, Morocco, Japan, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Switzerland, The United States of America, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Netherlands, Qatar, United Arab Emirates & Italy) will be exempt from quarantine upon arrival if the following conditions are met:
- The passenger does not have a body temperature above 37.5°C (99.5°F);
- The passenger does not have a persistent cough, difficulty breathing or other flu-like symptoms;
- The passenger has a negative PCR-based COVID-19 test conducted within 96 hours before travel.
Please, note that travellers coming from countries not listed above will not be exempt and will be required to quarantine upon arrival for 14 days, at a Government-designated facility.
All passengers arriving in or transiting through Kenya must have a negative PCR COVID-19 certificate for a test conducted within 96 hours prior to travel.
Please note that all who enter the airport terminal may be subject to temperature checks. If a passenger is confirmed to have a fever, he/she will not be allowed to board their flight. Those with an elevated body temperature shall be referred for secondary assessment by Port Health staff who will handle the passenger in accordance with public health guidelines.
Please be advised that effective January 1st, 2021, all passengers are required to apply and obtain an e-visa before boarding an aircraft.
Measures taken by the government
On September 28th 2020 the Government of Kenya directed that large gatherings, meetings, conferences and political events over 15 people remain suspended.
On June 29th 2021, the Government of Kenya announced continued restrictions in response to the worsening of the COVID-19 pandemic. Restrictions are primarily focused on 13 counties declared a “hotspot zone”. Restrictions for the “hotspot zone” include:
- A curfew enforced from 7:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m.
- Movement between the hotspot zone and the rest of the country is strongly discouraged, except for essential and emergency services.
- Non-food and livestock markets are suspended.
- Employers are advised to allow employees to work from home.
- All physical and worship gatherings are suspended.
Country-wide restrictions include:
- A curfew enforced from 10:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m.
- The continued prohibition against political gatherings and all public gatherings.
- Places of worship may only use one-third of their normal capacity.
- All funerals must be held within 96 hours after the confirmation of death, and no more than 100 people may attend a funeral.
- Weddings, ceremonies of rites of passage, and all other similar events or ceremonies may have no more than 100 people attending.
- Hospitals must restrict visitors to one individual per patient.
Domestic air travel resumed on July 15th, 2020 under Ministry of Health and Transport guidelines.
Testing
PCR testing is widely available. We expect antigen tests to be increasingly available during 2021.
Turnaround times vary outside of major metropolitan cities, and it will be important to confirm the turnaround time with each lab.
Testing is available at the country’s major hospitals (Aga Khan Hospital, Nairobi Hospital, Kenyatta National Hospital) and private laboratories (Lancet laboratories, Meditest diagnostics). The charge for the test is approximately USD 100 (KES 10,000) at private health facilities and USD 50 (KES 5,000) at government hospitals.
Test results are typically available within 24 – 96 hours depending on laboratory and location.
Emergency number (related to COVID-19) while visiting the country
Report any suspected cases to the Kenya Ministry of Health hotline numbers: 0800721316, 0732353535, 0729471414
Source:
US Embassy in Kenya https://ke.usembassy.gov/covid-19-information/
Published on October 8th 2021 (checked on October 20th 2021)
For more information please visit our COVID-19 Updates page at https://www.hiddentrails.com/article/covid19update.aspx