Last Updated on September 21, 2021, 5:26 AM AST by Renaldo St Juste
The United Kingdom has not given recognition to the Jamaican vaccination status. Kamina Johnson Smith, who is Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade in Jamaica, highlighted that many Jamaicans had been affected by this decision.
Jamaica is in the amber of the stoplight system of the United Kingdom. The country had made additional changes to it and recognized only a few countries’ vaccination programmes that mostly includes the member states of the European Union.
The Foreign Affairs Minister explained, “I brought the issue of the treatment of vaccination programmes to the attention of CARICOM for action last week, and I have engaged the UK Government on the issue at the technical level. Additionally, I will also raise the matter in the upcoming bilateral meeting with the UK, in the margins of the United Nations General Assembly this week.”
Johnson Smith also added that the stoplight travel status is a function of our vaccination numbers, hospitalizations, variants and related considerations in Jamaica. There is some lack of clarity on the specific formula, but it is quite clear that these circumstances need to be improved for themselves and for this reason.
The Minister shared that an expanded UK List of programmes has already been planned for the month of October, and while the method is relatively fresh, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade has asked data from the Ministry of Health and Wellness to help the UK Government in the study Jamaica’s vaccination record.
The Foreign Affairs Minister said, “The travel status of the country is another reason why we all should be vaccinated in order to reduce the spread of COVID 19, serious illness, hospitalization and the development of variants. We need to improve the level of protection for ourselves, our families and the wider population. We are all in this together!”
Renaldo St Juste, with his connection across the regions excels in providing all the regional updates from across the caribbean nation. His reporting majorly includes covering entertainment, crime and sports.
