This archive report was first published on 6 May 2020.
As the world grapples with the Covid-19 pandemic, Kenyans stranded abroad due to lockdowns have started returning home. The first batch of 84 citizens arrived at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport from London on Monday night.
According to a source, the passengers were screened at the airport before being taken into quarantine. They had presented their coronavirus clearance certificates before boarding the Kenya Airways plane.
Mr. Ambrose Njeru, one of the passengers, explained that the travellers had sent their coronavirus results to a Kenya Airways doctor, who approved their request for travel. When they arrived, officials already had a list of the returnees.
Every passenger paid Sh53,544 for the journey, which was a significant expense considering the limited space on the plane. 'We were few in the plane. A passenger was required to occupy three seats,' Mr. Njeru said.
More Kenyans are expected to land from China tomorrow or Friday, while a flight from Mumbai, India, is overbooked as Kenyans jostle to return home.
Kenya's High Commissioner in New Delhi, Willy Bett, said the plane would leave India at 5.15pm local time. The mission had reached an agreement with Kenya Airways to fly home some 223 people caught up in India's 21-day total lockdown, which has been extended to May 17.
Mr. Bett emphasized that the programme was not an evacuation or repatriation, but rather facilitation to help stranded Kenyans get home. 'That is why they are paying,' he said.
