Egypt will reopen all its airports on July 1, the civil aviation minister said on Sunday, after suspending regular international flights in March over the COVID-19 outbreak.
Mohamed Manar Anba told a news conference that flights would resume gradually at the airports from the start of July.
He said foreign tourism would be limited to resorts in three coastal provinces, after the government said on Thursday it would reopen Egypt's main seaside resorts for international flights and foreign tourists from July 1.
Anba and Tourism Minister Khaled al-Anani, who joined the news conference, outlined measures to be taken inside planes, at airports and in hotels to help ensure the safety and health of foreign tourists.
Travelers from countries with high rates of coronavirus infections, based on World Health Organization (WHO) assessments, need to be tested before coming to Egypt, Reuters quoted the ministers as saying.
The pandemic has shuttered Egypt's tourist industry, which the government says accounts for 5 percent of economic output but which analysts say may account for as much as 15 percent if jobs and investment indirectly related to the industry are included.
Egypt has registered 42,980 cases of the virus and 1,484 deaths. The number is lower than many European countries but cases have climbed in the past three weeks.
