Panel SA: Vaccine requirement may encourage tourism, industry representatives say

The requirement of proof of vaccine against Covid-19 for travelers from abroad, determined by Minister Luís Roberto Barroso, of the Federal Supreme Court, was well received by the tourism sector.

For Fabio Aguayo, director of CNTur (National Confederation of Tourism), the decision follows the pattern adopted by other countries to control the pandemic and may even move tourism in the country.

“Many international tourists avoid our country because we don’t have a safe policy,” he says. “The decision of the Supreme Court to make this regulation may even encourage the coming of vaccinated tourists to the country.”

Orlando Souza, president of the Forum of Hotel Operators in Brazil, says the country needs to look for mechanisms to prevent tourism from facilitating the spread of coronavirus variants such as omicron.

“We cannot risk a rebound from the pandemic. Hotels are starting to stick their heads out of the water. If a rebound comes, we will drown. It is a prudent requirement at this time,” he says.

With Ricardo Balthazar (interim), Andressa Motter e Ana Paula Branco.