They said the closure of international borders to contain the spread of Covid-19 has not stifled public demand, and expect people to want to travel as soon as it was safe to do so.
Speaking during a forum organised by the Malaysian Academy of Sciences on the recovery of the aviation industry, Mohsin Aziz, who manages an aviation investment fund, said that assurances of safety will be important to travellers once borders reopen.
“Demand for travel is high everywhere, everyone wants out,” he said, adding that in order to build public trust, there was a need for greater cooperation between countries and international authorities.
He said a “vaccine passport” that has been spoken about by health minister Dr Adham Baba, the International Air Travel Association and others, will be essential in facilitating international travel if a standard can be agreed upon.
“The concept of vaccine passport is not new. Some 20-30 years ago, you needed to carry a yellow card with a vaccine record if you came from some countries in Africa or Latin America.
“If this vaccine card is back, we should not view it with any reservation,” Mohsin said, adding that such a system could be implemented fairly easily and without prohibitive cost, based on the latest computer technology.
Such a “passport” would provide recipient countries with proof a traveller had been vaccinated against Covid-19, which some believe will be an essential part of future travel.
Azharuddin Abdul Rahman, former chairman of the Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia, said that there needs to be standardisation across the world in order to reduce confusion and assure travellers of the efficacy of different virus mitigation techniques.
He pointed to some countries like India and China having long lists of traveller requirements while places like Japan have very simple guidelines.
“As long as you have inconsistencies in policy among different countries, it’s going to be difficult for people to travel and they won’t want to do it.
“We need a strong global body that can look at multiple countries’ policies and bring some consistency.”
For example, the length of quarantine periods, the rules associated and when tests are conducted are now at the discretion of individual governments.
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