In June more travelers transited out of Entebbe International Airport than those who entered the country, a Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCCA), report indicates.
The report, which tracks monthly passenger travels through Uganda’s only international airport, indicates that during June a total of 40,137 passengers left the country through Entebbe compared to the 29,209 arrivals and 6,136 transit passengers.
The trend, the report indicates, might have been a result of Covid-19 related disruptions, key among them a lockdown and resurgence in Covid-19 cases.
During the period, according to the report, at least 75,472 passengers were processed through Entebbe International Airport, which was lower than 77,063 that transited through the airport in May and 85,054 in April.
Arrivals through Entebbe International Airport have continued to decline as several airlines suspend operations through the airport while others have had to cut down on their flight frequencies.
RwandAir and Emirates are some of the airlines that have suspended operations while Kenya Airways has cut down on flight frequencies.
Uganda, which had successfully curbed the spread of Covid-19 experienced a surge in the days leading to May and June invoking a second lockdown just last month.
The lockdown and the surge in case numbers has had tremendous impact on a number of economic activities key among them international travel.
Airlines and travelers have cited high cases of Covid-19 for their decision to reduce or cut back on travel while others are taking caution as a number of governments, especially in the West, have warned their citizens against traveling to Uganda unless necessary.
Mr Vianney Luggya, the UCAA manager public affairs, earlier told Daily Monitor Covid-19 has in the last five months affected travel through Entebbe.
Tourism, which is one of Uganda’s largest foreign exchange earners, largely depends on international arrivals.
Therefore, the drop is expected to impact tourism, which since lifting the first lockdown in June last year, has been seeking to recover from huge loses.
Mr Luggya noted that the numbers are likely to drop further unless there is a change in the current surge in Covid-19 cases that had aggressively risen in May and June.
However, government numbers from the Ministry of Health have in recent days indicated a slowdown infections even as travel challenges including costly travel, remain.
