Staff Reporter :
No proper guideline for Covid-19 test of Bangladeshi nationals visiting foreign countries has yet been given and the travellers also do not know where the test will be done.
Director General of Health Service (DGHS) said, they will fix where and how the Covid-19 test will be done in case of Bangladeshi nationals visiting abroad. We are waiting for the directives of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare as quick as possible to avoid controversies.
We will perform according to the Ministry’s desire. They can choose anyone from government institutions. Otherwise if the Ministry wants, we can do it, said DGHS Assistant Director Dr Aysha Akter.
Meanwhile, the government on Sunday decided that no Bangladeshis would be allowed to leave the country without having a Covid-19 negative certificate obtained from authorized coronavirus testing centers.
The decision was taken at a virtual inter-ministerial meeting chaired by Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen. Health and Family Welfare Minister Zahid Malek, Expatriate Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Imran Ahmad and State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam attended the meeting.
The meeting recommended uploading all Covid-19 negative certificates on the website of respective authorized coronavirus testing authorities so that immigration officers can check its authenticity before allowing anyone to leave the country.
Before that Japan, South Korea, China and Italy had banned all kinds of flights from Bangladesh due to Covid-19 positive passenger.
The officials said, for now the decision is that the travellers from Bangladesh have to carry Covid-19 negative certificate to be obtained from its authorized coronavirus testing centers.
About 44 Covid-19 testing centres out of 77 are administrated by the government.
On the other hand, the migrant workers have to get Covid-19 negative certificates from any Expatriate Welfare and Overseas Employment Ministry’s authorized testing centres.
But the decision wasn’t taken as to which testing centres will be doing test for expatriates, said Dr. Aysha Akter.
Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training’s Director General Md. Shamsul Alam said, we don’t want further to tarnish image of the country abroad. So, it is priority to testing first. For that we will work as per Ministry’s direction.
However, no airline company got any direction, said several airline officials including Biman Bangladesh Airlines and Qatar Airways.
Since June 16 about five airlines are operating flight from Bangladesh.
Md Mokabbir Hossain, Managing Director and CEO of Biman Bangladesh Airlines said, they would take action accordingly after receiving new instructions about passengers’ Covid-19 certificate.
“We have not had any problems with any of the passengers yet. But this is a pandemic situation. We will take action as directed.”
Anonymously an official of Qatar Airways said they had not received any such instructions.
