COVID-19 risk in Kyrgyzstan is high. Everyone in Sary-Mogol looks forward to sharing their energy and spirit with visitors again. They enjoy the unique feel of the village – the old Soviet Uaz cars, the ancient ulak tartysh horse game, the markets selling traditional crafts. The residents of a small traditional village high in the mountains of Kyrgyzstan in Central Asia, which once attracted a steady stream of visitors, are learning how to adapt to the reality of a world where the COVID-19 pandemic has all but frozen out the opportunities provided by tourism. That, and the overall government lockdowns, helped keep infection numbers low. Travel to Kyrgyzstan is subject to entry restrictions British nationals are able to enter Kyrgyzstan. It has been over a decade since Umar Tashbekov saw his opportunity. Passengers must hand-carry original test results. The health ministry also confirmed that all three suspected COVID-19 carriers are currently in quarantine. Meanwhile, 980 people are currently hospitalized across the country and 1,485 patients are receiving treatment at home. His village, Sary-Mogol in Kyrgyzstan, at an altitude of 3,600 metres, is close to Lenin’s Peak, a popular mountain destination for tourists. Open to British tourists? Kyrgyzstan has announced it is lifting coronavirus restrictions to allow citizens of foreign countries entry to the Central Asian nation. Then Covid-19 struck and the visitors stopped coming. The outcome for 2020 is expected to be a decrease in international tourism economy by around 80% (downside of previous estimates), with domestic tourism driving the short term recovery. He expected a normal summer, but with no tourists coming, he is now struggling to pay it back. He built his own guesthouse, and was in the process of building a new one. They are not the only ones feeling the strain in their village. Now he worries about the effects of the quarry gas he breathes in regularly. To minimize the risk of becoming a victim of crime: 1. do not walk or travel alone, especially a… According to the latest report from the Republican Headquarters for Combating COVID-19, a total of 68, 894 Kyrgyzstanis have been cured so far. He took over the business from his father in 2012 but coronavirus has stopped the flow of visitors. Soon after, he also opened the area’s first yurt camp, where tourists can stay in 12 traditional Kyrgyz lodgings out in the mountain valley. Many countries tried to help themselves and their neighbors to combat the virus. Her new Ethnographic Museum, built by her son in July, is full of local products and historical artifacts. “We had to close the office, yurt camp and guest houses this year.”. Domestic tourism is helping to soften the blow, at least partially, and governments have taken impressive immediate action to restore and re-activate the sector, while protecting jobs and businesses. In 2015, he had the idea to start the village’s horse and yak games festival and fair. Abdilla and his family have lunch at home in Sary-Mogol. Since visitors dried up during the pandemic, she has been offering workshops in traditional crafts, such as making doll’s hair, to people living in the area. Visit the Embassy's COVID-19 page for more information on COVID-19 in Kyrgyzstan. But as his wife worked in the now closed guesthouse kitchen, this is the only income they have. Because homes are already crowded, people mostly meet up out in the street. Abdilla and his family have felt the economic pain. Horsemanship is a long tradition in the mountains of Kyrgyzstan. © 2021 Guardian News & Media Limited or its affiliated companies. ... Tourism is not highly developed, despite spectacular natural beauty, and there is substantial rural poverty. The traditional sport of ulak-tartysh in the village of Taldy-Suu, near Sary-Mogol. Yes (negative Covid result from … Covid-19 has allowed governments with authoritarian tendencies to increase their control over the internet. (Reporting by Olga Dzyubenko; Writing by Olzhas Auyezov; Editing by … Travelers at increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19 should consider postponing all travel, including essential travel, to Kyrgyzstan. His vision has led to new ideas to develop the town and the family business. As the global economy changes, we must be more active in attracting foreign investors to other industries. “It is unacceptable to return Thailand to the pre-COVID-19 level of tourism dependency. “Sometimes I didn’t have time to come home. Tourism comprised 3.1% of the nation’s GDP—and 8.2% of export earnings—in 2018/2019, with an annual economic value of A$60.8b (US$40.2b). His company, CBT, soon became an “incubator” for the industry – almost everyone working in tourism has at some point passed through its doors. Tashbekov opened the village’s first guesthouse in 2007, and invited other villagers to work with him. But villagers here still play volleyball in the gym, and take part in horse games, held to celebrate events such as the completion of a new house or the birth of a baby. Life was hard in this remote area of central Asia, until tourism offered new hope. Kyrgyzstan conducted 3,141 coronavirus tests over the past day, added the agency. All of that momentum has been lost in the wake of the pandemic. In the last decade, tourism has grown so that almost everyone here is connected to the industry in some way. Kyrgyzstan. The UN development programme (UNDP), which this year has launched a set of measures to strengthen adventure tourism in Kyrgyzstan, published a survey that found the most-affected sectors of the economy in Kyrgyzstan will be trade and consumer services and construction, each of which can expect 20% contraction. Buunisa Termechikova eats pilaf with her daughter and other guests at home in Burgan-Suu village. If you get sick in Kyrgyzstan and need medical care, resources may be limited. Kyrgyzstan, along with neighboring Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan have also taken measures to limit or ban large public gatherings, as well as banning Friday prayers at mosques. Clockwise from top left: A view of Lenin’s Peak and Sary Mogol village in south-east Kyrgyzstan; a girl carries bottles to fetch water in the village; clothes and other goods are sold at a weekly market, while men trade livestock. TOURISM Covid scare on cruise to nowhere highlights perils of resuming tourism. ♦ Receive daily updates directly in your inbox -. Kyrgyz Republic could see GDP plunge 10 percent as a result of COVID-19, as domestic violence surges. In 2019, more than 1,300 tourists passed through Sary-Mogol. No. Air and land travel, both international and domestic, can be subject to delays due to inadequate infrastructure, delays at border crossings, and winter weather. Buunisa Termechikova, 58, also expected a normal summer. The optimism on display just two months ago when Singapore Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung pledged to reopen the city-state and its tourism-reliant economy has taken a beating after a possible local coronavirus case was found aboard … Target locations include: 1. bars 2. parks 3. areas near major hotels 4. public transportation, including stations 5. currency exchange booths 6. shopping centres and markets The capacity of police to respond to crimes and other incidents is limited. Kyrgyzstan added on Friday 122 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the country's total caseload to 81,156, Trendreports citing Kabar. The entire village attends, either as participants or spectators. Abdilla Tashbekov at the empty office of the CBT tourism company. Lake Tulpar-Kul, in the Chon-Alay mountains. Bishkek [Kyrgyzstan], December 16 (ANI/Xinhua): The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Kyrgyzstan reached 78,151 on Wednesday as 241 new cases were registered across the country in the past 24 hours, said Kyrgyz's Republican Headquarters for Combating COVID-19. All rights reserved. Kyrgyzstan, which borders China, has confirmed 1,002 COVID-19 cases, of which 12 have died and 675 people have recovered. The countries of emerging Europe included in the study (many of those in the EU are excluded) broadly … According to the UN Development Programme (UNDP) the tourism sector has been one of the biggest economic causalities of the pandemic in Kyrgyzstan. His training has come in handy during the pandemic. His village, Sary-Mogol in Kyrgyzstan, at an altitude of 3,600 metres, is close to Lenin’s Peak, a popular mountain destination for tourists. Revenues are predicted to fall by as much as 90%. Phuket 'goes local' amid COVID-19 tourism slump Annual festival of rituals offers inspiration for reviving moribund sector A lone beachgoer stands on the shore of Phuket's Patong Beach on Oct. 25. Abdilla has been a tour guide for more than 10 years. Robbery, mugging and pickpocketing occur frequently. But he loved working with tourists, meeting people from all over the world. Others find employment as teachers or in the nearby coal mine. Sign up for the Global Dispatch newsletter – a fortnightly roundup of our top stories, recommended reads, and thoughts from our team on key development and human rights issues: Available for everyone, funded by readers. The minister said, “In promoting domestic tourism, the Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism (MPRT), in collaboration with other government agencies and travel agents, are continuously working to ensure that measures to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 are adhered to; this includes body temperature checks, hand washing and social or physical distancing. “If tourism does not improve, I will have to go to Osh or some other place to look for work in construction,” he says. The name and address of the lab, where the test was performed, must be clearly displayed on the test result. Left: a sign indicates the yurt camp near Tulpar-Kel lake. Read more here about weathering the winter and the pandemic in the mountains of Kyrgyzstan. S. citizen travelers may now enter the country via international airports in Bishkek, Osh, and Issyk Kul. It was also a healthier job, he says, being outside in nature all day. Bishkek [Kyrgyzstan], November 18 (ANI/ Xinhua): Kyrgyzstan's COVID-19 cases reached 67,894 on Wednesday as 425 new cases have been registered across the country in the past 24 hours. Before COVID-19, the tourism industry did not consider the idea of beach management a top priority. CDC recommends travelers avoid all nonessential international travel to Kyrgyzstan. In the absence of foreign visitors, she is using the space for workshops for fellow villagers. The Republican Headquarters for Combating COVID-19 said that of the total number 4,118 cases are medical workers, including 3,927 recoveries. If they were already hiking there, why … This year, it was fewer than a dozen. Across the globe businesses in the travel and tourism sector have been left reeling from covid-19, and Australia is no exception. “The Kyrgyz Republic is facing an urgent and difficult set of challenges,” UNDP Resident Representative in the Kyrgyz Republic Louise Chamberlain said, citing massive losses across major economic sectors—tourism, trade, consumer services, and construction. He is always reading and researching on the internet, earning his reputation as the “studious” one. The 31-year-old has been a guide for more than 10 years. COVID-19 RT-PCR Test: All persons travelling to The Bahamas must obtain a negative COVID-19 RT-PCR (swab) test taken no more than five (5) days prior to the date of arrival. “There’s not enough work, and not enough money.”. Right: yaks roam in a field near the village. With his father recovering from a broken leg, a mother with Parkinson’s disease requiring expensive treatments, a one-year-old child and another on the way, the family’s resources are stretched to the limit. Seven-day case rate (Nov 27): 45.2 cases per 100,000. Midinov Almazbek studied languages on his father’s advice, which allows him to teach English at the local school. The residents of a small traditional village high in the mountains of Kyrgyzstan in Central Asia, which once attracted a steady stream of visitors, are learning how to adapt to the reality of a world where the COVID-19 pandemic has all but frozen out the opportunities provided by tourism. International aid to combat COVID-19. Kazakhstan sent humanitarian aid to Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Afghanistan once the first cases of COVID-19 infected people appeared in the spring. The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic continues to hit hard, with international tourism expected to decrease by around 80% in 2020. The Government of the Kyrgyz Republic lifted the entry ban on U.S. citizen travelers on December 4, 2020. Bloomberg Published on Thu, Dec 10, 2020 / 8:29 AM GMT+8. Kyrgyzstan conducted 1,365 coronavirus tests over the past day. Tashbekov’s other son, Ali, 23, began working in the family business at 13, before going to Osh to study logistics and welding. The COVID-19 pandemic has created the largest disruption of education systems in history, affecting nearly 1.6 billion learners in more than 190 countries and all continents. Travel corridor? Buunisa Termechikova opened the Ethnographic Museum in Sary-Molog in July. The main source of work is the large livestock market in town. Violent crime is common and criminals (including organized gangs) target foreigners due to their perceived wealth. Life here is not easy – short summers and unfavourable growing conditions make it hard to grow much more than potatoes and barley. Out of its 5,200-strong population, about 500 people have left for Russia where companies welcome factory workers. Now this delicate bionetwork has become a … A-A. In 2019, more than 1,300 tourists passed through Sary-Mogol to enjoy amongst other attractions the village’s horse and yak games festival and fair; in 2020, the number dwindled to less than a dozen. have been forecast to almost disappear in 2020, the most-affected sectors of the economy in Kyrgyzstan will be trade and consumer services and construction. After [guiding] one tour, I immediately went with other tourists back to the mountains.”, Ali Tashbekov has been working as a welder at the coalmine during the pandemic instead of in his usual role as a mountain guide. The latest Freedom on the Net report, published by human rights watchdog Freedom House, highlights the accelerated deterioration of internet freedom amidst the Covid-19 pandemic.. Maybe it is this energy and spirit that makes the village attractive to those who visit. Many of these countries later expanded their restrictions, with some later implementing global restrictions that may be listed above. His wife works as a music teacher, and they are living off her income, with two children to support. His wife Aizirek Avazova, pictured bottom, has had to stop working in the family’s guesthouse. Receipts from the export of tourism and travel services, which represented almost 6% of GDP in 2018, have been forecast to almost disappear in 2020. He built his own guesthouse for visitors and initiated the village’s horse and yak games festival and fair. A+. Like the first Russian tourist, Peter the Great, three centuries later his fellow citizens love to open a window to Europe or anywhere else and travel freely around the world. The outlook for tourism economy recovery remains highly uncertain, as the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic continues to heavily hit the sector. Kyrgyzstan closed its borders on 22 March after the country registered its first Covid-19 cases were reported in the country by cancelling all international and … BISHKEK, Dec. 10 -- In the past day, another 527 coronavirus patients have recovered in Kyrgyzstan, reported KABAR news agency. COVID-19 Kyrgyzstan Update September 28 NEW PCR Testing Requirement As of September 25, Kyrgyzstan now requires travelers to have negative PCR test results dated no more than 72 hours before arrival into Kyrgyzstan. See the healthcare information in the Coronavirus section for information on what to do if you think you have coronavirus while in Kyrgyzstan. Midinov Almazbek and his brother enclose their veranda with wooden planks in Sary-Mogol. Then, Tashbekov’s son, Abdilla, took over the business. The entrepreneur opened a guesthouse and is skilled at crafts, especially the traditional Kyrgyz woman’s hat. He organised ski training with other guides to move into winter tourism. Two years ago, a Korean engineer had such a good horse-riding holiday that he funded an initiative upgrading the water infrastructure so that villagers no longer had to carry water from the river. Note that travel across land borders for U.S citizens is not permitted at this time. Receipts from tourism and travel services are expected to drop 90 percent. Sary-Mogol is a three-hour drive from the nearest city of Osh, in the country’s south-east. Ticket sales bring in revenue for villagers working at the festival – cooking and selling traditional foods, performing traditional music and dancing shows, managing the yurt camp and competing in the games. But if there has been limited impact on health, the impact on livelihoods is deep. “It was a good time,” he says. Breeding yaks  is one of the few traditions to make a living. If they were already hiking there, why not attract them to visit his village too? The early presidential election in Kyrgyzstan is scheduled for 10 January. Many countries have implemented measures that affect citizens of, or recent travellers to, a particular country or set of countries. He and his father opened a bigger office, which serves as a gathering place for guides, workers and tourists. Midinov is struggling to repay a loan he took out to build a guesthouse a few years ago, “It’s been a hard year,” he says. An upside to traditional village life, with grandparents, parents and children all living together in the same small houses, has been the slow spread of Covid-19. Closures of schools and other learning spaces have impacted 94 per cent of the world’s student population, up to 99 per cent in low and lower-middle income countries. That might bring its own set of challenges: the construction sector may soon be another difficult area in which to find jobs. FROM THE FIELD: Humanitarians on the frontline in COVID-19 fight, FROM THE FIELD: coping with COVID in refugee camps, Tough times for tourism, but UN travel organization predicts holiday traffic will return. During the summer, Almazbek also works as a guide. When the flow of visitors to the village stopped, he was able to find work as a mechanic in the mine. UNDP Kyrgyzstan’s COVID-19 crisis response is designed to help decision-makers look beyond recovery, towards 2030, making choices and managing complexity and uncertainty in four main areas: governance and agency, social protection, green economy, and digital disruption. Villagers in Sary-Mogol are used to long and harsh winters, but this year are looking positively forward to the time when they can welcome tourists back. “The tourist season is dead,” he says. He took out a bank loan a few years ago to build a guesthouse, which he successfully opened, but in February he took out another loan to expand his business. 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