Kenyans among foreign students likely to be deported from US if they take full-online classes in fall

BY OLIVIA MUNGWANA

Kenyans who have been stuck outside the country can now fly into their motherland from the beginning of next month, President Uhuru Kenyatta has said.

On Monday, Kenyatta announced the resumption of international travel into and out of the country as part of “phased reopening” of the economy, as well as the lifting of internal travel restrictions.

The move comes as pressure mounts to kickstart the country’s ailing economy after nearly four months of coronavirus restrictions that have devastated key industries such as tourism.

Kenyatta said in a televised address that “international air travel into and out of the territory of Kenya shall resume effective 1 August 2020.”

Kenya, like many other countries has been grappling with the agony and uncertainty brought about by the Coronavirus pandemic.

“Local air travel to resume on Wednesday, July 15 in strict conformity with the guidelines of Ministries of Health and Transport,” the president announced, adding that international travel will resume on August 1, 2020.

“We have not yet met the irreducible minimums 100 per cent. However, we have reached a reasonable level of preparedness across our counties,” Uhuru said.

He added that the eased restrictions were conditional and that the nation would revert to lockdown if health trend signals a worsening of the pandemic.

A cautious president Kenyatta said the patterns of the disease would be studied for the next 21 days.

“Places of worship will be opened in three weeks to 100 people for services that are not more than one hour and shall not include congregants under the age of 13 years or above the age of 58 years or persons with underlying conditions,” he said.

This is whilst, Sunday schools and Madrasas will remain closed.

“Restrictions on gathering in weddings, bars and political gatherings have been extended for 30 days. I remain alive to the socio-economic challenges facing our country. History has taught us that Covid-19 is not the first economic disaster, there were many more before it,” Uhuru said.

“Jobs have been lost, businesses have closed and livelihoods endangered,” he added.

He went on: “It is not enough for the government to pump resources into the economy using stimulus instruments, as we have done.  Such efforts will go to waste if the people do not co-create solutions with the government.””We must remember that the coronavirus is invisible. We can only evade it by engaging the invisible army.”

Uhuru said that the country had to contain the infections and the number of deaths before all the Covid-19 restrictions were lifted.

“To open up the economy, the infections must be contained and the number of deaths must be headed downward but this is not the case.”

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