The Brazilian government today lifted restrictions imposed on flights from African countries at the end of last year, following the emergence of Omicron, a new variant of SARS-CoV-2, according to an ordinance published in the Diário Oficial da União.

According to the Lusa news, as of today, travelers coming from or passing through South Africa, Botswana, Essuatíni, Lesotho, Namibia, and Zimbabwe are again allowed to enter Brazil, provided they follow the testing criteria and present a vaccination certificate against covid-19.

The measure meets a recommendation from the National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa), Brazil's regulatory body, which earlier this month recommended that these border restrictions be reviewed.

The interministerial order was signed by the Ministers of the Civil House, Ciro Nogueira; of Health, Marcelo Queiroga; of Justice and Public Safety, Antônio Ramirez Lorenzo (substitute); and of Infrastructure, Marcelo Sampaio Cunha Filho (substitute).

Brazil is currently facing a new wave of the pandemic caused by the rapid spread of Omicron, a new variant, classified as worrisome and very contagious by the World Health Organization (WHO), has been detected in southern Africa and, since South African health authorities gave the alert in November, has become dominant in several countries.