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The government of Rwanda have announced that from 3 August, a movement clearance pass will be required by passengers who need to travel to or from Kigali International Airport between the hours of 21.00 and 05.00 (local time), when a public curfew is otherwise in place. Applicants are required to request the clearance pass either via an online government platform or via a quick code (*127#) and provide their name, telephone number, car license plate number, time of movement and flight number.

The country re-imposed a lockdown on the greater Gaberone COVID-19 zone from midnight on 30 July for a minimum period of two weeks. Everyone in the applicable area must stay at home except for essential purposes, and travel permits are require to make a journey to buy supplies; 'interzonal' travel in and out of the zone will not be permitted, and only certain categories of key workers are exempt from these rules.

Germany's health minister has said that mandatory testing of passengers returning to the country from nations with a high risk of COVID-19 infection will take effect 'later this week'; final preparations are reportedly in progress in order to coordinate the testing solution across both airports and international train stations across all states of Germany.

The government of the Philippines has announced that from 4 August it will re-impose a stricter COVID-19 lockdown in and around the capital of Manila for at least two weeks, as the country struggles to contain a jump in infections. Included in the restrictions will be Metro Manila and nearby provinces such as Laguna, Cavite, Rizal and Bulacan.

Namibia opened its borders to tourists from a selected list of low-risk international countries on 3 August for a trial period set to last until 17 September. International tourists permitted to travel to Namibia will be required to present a negative COVID-19 PCR test result obtained within 72 hours prior to arrival; tourists will not be subjected to a mandatory quarantine but must remain in their initial arrival destination for a seven-day period, during which time an additional COVID-19 test will be conducted. Provided the results are negative, they may then resume their travels.

The Dubai-based airline has announced that it will resume flights to Nairobi (from 2 August), Baghdad and Basra (from 10 August), expanding its growing network. The move will take the airline’s passenger network to 67 destinations in August, including seven points in Africa and five points in the Middle East. Flights between Nairobi-Dubai and Basra-Dubai will operate three times a week while flights between Baghdad and Dubai will operate four times a week.

The country eased entry restrictions for some visitors on 1 August, allowing citizens and residents of Canada, the European Union, Schengen Zone countries and the UK to enter; flights originating from these countries will also now be permitted. Among the additional requirements are a COVID-19 certificate obtained no more than 48 hours before departure, purchase of a specific Costa Rican insurance product and online completion of an advance epidemiological information form.

The government of Singapore have announced that some incoming passengers will be required to wear electronic monitoring tags from 11 August in order to ensure that they comply with COVID-19 quarantine requirements, as the city-state gradually re-opens its borders. The devices will use GPS and Bluetooth signals and must be activated upon reaching a passenger's home; any attempt to leave home during the mandatory quarantine period or tamper with the device will trigger an alert to the authorities.

The Australian state of Victoria has declared a 'state of disaster', which will remain in place until at least 13 September. New lockdown measures include a night-time curfew from 20.00 to 05.00 (local time) for residents of Melbourne; the only valid reasons for leaving home during these hours will be work, medical care or care-giving. Movement during the day is also heavily restricted to essential purposes only, with shopping and one hour of exercise permitted within 5km of residents' homes. Restrictions will also be tightened across regional Victoria from 00.01 (local time) on 6 August, with restaurants, cafés, bars and gyms set to close.

The government of the Seychelles has announced that all passengers arriving from 1 August, when the airport re-opens for scheduled passenger flights – must have proof of a negative COVID-19 PCR test result taken a maximum of 72 hours before boarding their flight; visitors must also be from a list low or medium-risk countries, and an application form must be submitted via a government portal. A list of countries from which passengers are permitted entry is available on the portal of the Seychelles department of health.

The Canadian government has announced that from today, 31 July, people who choose to travel to Alaska through Canada will face tougher restrictions; the measures are an attempt to crack down on anyone taking advantage of the provided passage to instead sneak into parks and leisure sites within Canada. Measures include cars' rear-view mirrors being marked with identification. Currently although the border between the countries is closed to all non-essential travel, U.S. citizens and visitors can drive to and from Alaska as long as they follow specific mandates.

The government of Norway has announced that will re-impose a 10-day quarantine requirement for people arriving from Belgium from 1 August, citing a significant rise in COVID-19 cases there. Norway last week also re-imposed restrictions on travel from Spain in a bid to prevent the spread of the virus.

The City Lodge Hotel Group (CLHG) has been working hard behind the scenes to strip out single-use plastic from guest bedrooms. In a bold move, the group, together with its South African supplier The Bespoke Amenities Company (TBAC), is launching an all-new range of bathroom amenities, including a Zero Bar. These will be available across all five hotel brands - Fairview Hotel (Kenya), Courtyard Hotel, City Lodge Hotel, Town Lodge and Road Lodge - in what is a first for a South African hotel group, and among the first in the world.

The country's government has announced that from today, 31 July, all international arrivals from high-risk areas who intend to stay in Iceland for 10 days or more must undergo two COVID-19 PCR tests. A first will be taken on arrival at the border, and the second will be conducted by a health care service 4-6 days later. Details on special precautions that must be taken in between tests, plus applicable charges for testing, can be found on the Icelandic government's COVID-19 portal.

The U.S. airline have, from 30 July, introduced a new health declaration for passengers during the check-in process; the acknowledgment requires passengers to check boxes indicating that they have not been diagnosed with or exposed to COVID-19 within the past two weeks, and have not experienced any of the primary symptoms. Passengers who cannot confirm this will be unable to complete check-in, and will be prompted to cancel or change their reservation with fees waived.

The airline has announced the resumption of flights to an additional 15 destinations between 31 July and 1 August. Flights to Bucharest, Chicago, Pristina and Sarajevo are to be offered from today, 31 July. From tomorrow, 1 August, flights will resume to Belgrade, Cairo, Kiev, London, Podgorica, Sibiu, Skopje, Sofia, Stockholm, Tirana and Varna.

China's government announced on 30 July that restrictions are now to be imposed on people coming in and out of Urumqi, the capital of China’s western Xinjiang region, in an effort contain a localised COVID-19 outbreak. Among other measures, Urumqi will mandate a 14-day quarantine for people arriving in the city from high-risk COVID-19 areas; others entering the city will need to show proof of a negative test within the past seven days.

The country's government has announced that from today, 31 July, all arrivals from Luxembourg will need to self-isolate for 14 days following its removal from the UK's travel corridor list. The decision is cited as being due to a consistent increase in COVID-19 cases in Luxembourg since the end of June; the devolved UK nations of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have all agreed to take the same decision within their respective jurisdictions.

The government of Japan have said that the U.S. island state of Hawaii has been included in a preliminary list of countries and regions that Japan is considering as part of a safe travel initiative; the program would require pre-travel COVID-19 testing and medical evaluation of returning passengers. The program includes a dozen countries and regions under consideration by Japanese officials including China, South Korea, Myanmar, Mongolia, Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan and several European countries.

Singapore Airlines, along with regional subsidiary SilkAir, has announced that from 31 July passengers can transit through Singapore Changi Airport from Milan in Italy to any destination in the their networks. A list of the latest cities approved for transit flights through Singapore can be found on the airlines' website.