???????????? ???????????????????????????????????????????????????? ???????????????????????????? ???????? ???????????????????? ???????????? ???????????? ???????????????? ???????????????????? ???????? ???????????? ???????????????????????????????????? ???????? ???????????? ????????????????????????????. AML and ATOL have taken all necessary steps towards providing a safe and pleasant airport environment to passengers. Indeed, our airport was the ???????????????????? ???????? ???????????????????????? to receive the ???????????????????????????? ???????????????????????? ???????????????????????????????????????????????????? from Airports Council International (ACI).
Flight MK103 landed at about 19h30 tonight, bringing in some 500,000 doses of Sinopharm Vaccines from Beijing, PROC. The Prime Minister of Mauritius Hon. Pravind K, Jugnauth, Ministers of the Government and Mr Gong Yufeng, Chargé d'Affaires of the PROC Embassy in Mauritius were at the airport to receive the consignment. This new lot of vaccines will contribute to boost the national vaccination efforts.
Some 38,400 doses of AstraZeneca vaccines arrived in Mauritius on board flight MK 017 which landed at SSR International Airport at 22H40 on 09 May 2021. This consignment of vaccines were delivered under the multi-agency-led initiative which aims at promoting equal access to Covid-19 vaccines throughout the world.
A delegation comprising Ministers of the Government and eminent members of the diplomatic corps & WHO were present at the airport to receive the vaccines on that occasion.
This new lot of vaccines will allow Mauritius to further its vaccination programme and protect more Mauritians against the virus.
The Airport Health Laboratory (AHL) is a state-of-the-art testing facility located at SSR International Airport and which started its operations in October 2020. To date, the AHL has completed more than 24,000 tests. Since the resurgence of local Covid-19 cases, a few weeks ago, some 16,000 tests were completed during the month of March 2021 alone.
The laboratory which works 24/7, uses high-tech testing equipment and is supported by specially designed ICT tools. The overall facility is manned by a dedicated team of highly qualified professionals. All of which gives the AHL the capacity to analyse more than 2500 samples daily. The AHL thus proves to be a key component of the national fight against the pandemic in Mauritius.
AML & ATOL are supporting the National Vaccination Campaign against Covid-19. Part of the Check-In Hall of SSR International Airport has been put at the disposal of the Ministry of Health & Wellness for the vaccination exercise, which restarted today. This part of the terminal is hence regarded as a regional vaccination centre for the southern region of the island.
In addition to airport employees, other frontliners are also undergoing vaccination at the airport.
Dedicated AML & ATOL personnel are also assisting the Ministry in channelling and registration tasks.
As part of the soft launch for the vaccination of airport personnel, a first batch of frontliners principally from AML and ATOL enlisted today, 27 Jan 2021, for the vaccination against Covid-19. More than 100 staff were vaccinated by the the Ministry of Health & Wellness (MOH&W) today and the Ministry is planning for a subsequent group to receive vaccination early next week. The second batch would include other airport stakeholders who also operate on the frontline, such as Airlines, PIO and Airport Police.
The MOH&W has developed a rigorous protocol prior to injection and thereafter for the monitoring of recipients after vaccination. Hence, following conduct of a general awareness session, all candidates for vaccination are interviewed individually to ascertain their medical condition and to answer any query they may have. Again at the vaccine administration phase, recipients are checked.
Following injection of the first vaccine dose, recipients are put under medical observation for a short period of time. Each one of them is also given a vaccination card indicating the day on which they will be receiving the second dose for optimal protection against the virus.
Most colleagues having opted for vaccination today stated the need for a majority to undergo vaccination to protect not only themselves but also their families and the population at large.
As the first days of this New Year unfold, it is encouraging to note that Mauritius has restored its Covid-Safe status, except for a rapidly isolated local contamination case detected a few weeks back.
Thus, since 26 November 2020, no local contamination cases was registered. Furthermore, the strict quarantine protocol has allowed to effectively detect Covid-19 cases among incoming passengers. As at 04 January 2021, there were some 8 active cases in Mauritius, being treated at the dedicated hospital.
The Airport Health Laboratory, which became operational since 15 October 2020 has also been instrumental in the multi-layered detection mechanism deployed at the Mauritian borders. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Mauritius has recorded some 531 cases. Thanks to the advanced detection and treatment procedures, the vast majority of Covid-19 patients were successfully cured.
Indeed, the new year has started with a surge of fresh hope with more than 60 potential vaccines being tested and some of them having already reached final testing stage.
It is further reassuring that many countries such as the United Kingdom, the European Union and the United States of America have already endorsed vaccines and started vaccinating their populations. Presently in Mauritius, the authorities are working with international organisations, such as the World Health Organisation and others, towards securing the most suitable vaccines and preparing for vaccination of the local population.
Our airport has just been awarded, for the second consecutive year, the title of Indian Ocean’s Leading Airport 2020 by the World Travel Awards.
This international recognition, which follows the computation of votes from industry captains and other professionals from the sector of aviation, travel tourism and hospitality, once again, highlights the hard work and dedication of the AML and ATOL teams. The sustained commitment and daily efforts of AML and ATOL Teams in providing the best services to our passengers and stakeholders, on a daily basis and despite of the challenging circumstances, deserve to be commended.
The fact that AML & ATOL have been able to maintain the high service levels despite the pandemic and the burden of the sanitary protocols, testifies of the additional efforts, which were provided by all team members, in managing the repercussions of the adverse prevailing conditions.
Management congratulates and conveys its sincere appreciation to all members of the AML & ATOL family who made this achievement possible.
The Airport Health Laboratory (AHL) has performed more than 2200 Covid-19 tests since it started operations on 15 October 2020.
As at date, the AHL has detected some 7 positive cases among incoming passengers, who were promptly directed to the dedicated treatment facility. Quality assurance of tests has been ensured through regular cross-verifications with the Molecular Biology Department of the Central Health Laboratory of the Ministry of Health & Wellness of Mauritius.
The AHL is now moving for the process of enrolling in an External Quality Assurance Scheme (EQAS) with the National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD) of Johannesburg, South Africa, which is a World Health Organisation (WHO) Designated Reference Laboratory.
Incoming passengers to Mauritius are now able to download and fill their Public Health Covid-19 Passenger Health Self-Declaration Form and Passenger Locator Form from the website of the Ministry of Health & Wellness.
This will facilitate access to the forms, which need to be downloaded and filled prior to check-in at the departure country. Duly filled forms will have to be presented to the Mauritian Health Authorities upon arrival.
With this new measure, Passengers will be able to pre-fill in the forms at their convenience, prior to taking their flights and will contribute to ease up the formalities and processing for travel amidst the pandemic.