Guinea

Overview

Guinea reported its first COVID-19 case on March 12, 2020. Since then, the contagion has spread rapidly. The authorities adopted several measures to reduce the risk of contagion. Notably, large public gatherings were banned, the international airport closed to non-essential flights, and public areas (markets, religious facilities) were required to have hand sanitizing equipment. All schools were closed. Other measures included closure of land borders, suspension of public events, religious, and leisure facilities; limiting public transport; and a nationwide night curfew.Guinean embassies and consulates suspended visa issuance to travelers from countries with more than 30 confirmed cases. On March 26, Guinea declared a state of emergency and tightened lockdown. Since then, the state of emergency has been renewed every thirty days with the latest extension announced on September 15. Starting April 18, wearing a face mask is mandatory in public places.

Reopening of the economy. On May 15, 2020, Guinea extended the containment measures but started easing the lockdown restrictions. The authorities lifted the curfew in the rest of the country and relaxed the limit on mass gatherings from 20 to 30 people. The curfew remains in force in the greater region of Conakry but is shortened from 10pm - 5am to 11pm - 5am.

On May 25, Guinea updated its travel advisory, requiring all travelers to provide proof of a COVID-19 test result and upon arrival, to undergo another test and a mandatory 14-day quarantine. In addition, foreign nationals must undergo a 14-day quarantine prior to their travel.

On June 15, Guinea announced further measures to ease lockdown restrictions. Since June 22, worship places in prefectures without new cases for 30 consecutive days were able to resume services. Universities and school-classes preparing for official examination reopened on June 29. To support the reopening, schools, universities and public markets are subject to regular disinfecting. Sanitary kits are distributed to schools, universities and places of worship.

On July 15, Guinea further relaxed the curfew in Conakry and nearby areas to midnight to 4am. International commercial flights resumed gradually starting July 17.

On September 22, the Guinean authorities lifted the capacity restriction on public transportation, announced the reopening of bars, restaurants and motels, and the resumption of cultural and social activities. Mask wearing and social distancing measures remain in effect.

The Republic of Guinea became the second country in Africa to receive the vaccine. Sputnik V was approved by the Ministry of Health under the emergency use authorization procedure. The approval was based on the results of the clinical trials of Sputnik V in Russia. In late December, the authorities received 55 doses of the vaccine. In March, Guinea received 200,000 of the Sinopharm vaccine and an additional 200,000 doses of the Sputnik V. In the first half of 2021, Guinea expects to receive 600,000 doses of the Sinopharm vaccine and more than 1 million doses preliminarily announced by the COVAX initiative. Phase 1 of the vaccination campaign has started focusing on medical staff, people in key government positions, religious practitioners, and the 65-and-older population. More than 50,000 people have been vaccinated as at end March.

On February 26, 2021, in response to an uptick in COVID cases, the government reinstated a number of containment measures. Measures include limiting the number of people permitted to gather in public spaces, compulsory temperature checks and mask wearing, and an 11pm-4am curfew. The daily number of new cases remained high throughout May.

The Republic of Guinea became the second country in Africa to receive the vaccine. Sputnik V was approved by the Ministry of Health under the emergency use authorization procedure. The approval was based on the results of the clinical trials of Sputnik V in Russia. In late December, the authorities received 55 doses of the vaccine. In March, Guinea received 200,000 of the Sinopharm vaccine and an additional 200,000 doses of the Sputnik V. In the first half of 2021, Guinea expects to receive 600,000 doses of the Sinopharm vaccine and more than 1 million doses preliminarily announced by the COVAX initiative. Phase 1 of the vaccination campaign has started focusing on medical staff, people in key government positions, religious practitioners, and the 65-and-older population. Nearly 220,000 people have been vaccinated as at end May. The authorities expect to receive an additional 400,000 doses in the coming months, reaching roughly 2.5m by August, with a goal of vaccinating at least 20 percent of the population by end-year.

COVID-19 Restrictions

Movement Restrictions:

Is a curfew in place? Yes
Are there restrictions on intercity or interstate travel? Yes
Land borders between Guinea and Senegal, Guinea Bissau, Côte d’Ivoire, and Libera are open.

Transportation Options:

Are commercial flights operating? Yes
Is public transportation operating? No
There is no public transportation system in Guinea.

Fines for Non-Compliance:

A fine of 50,000 GNF (approximately USD 5) for non-compliance with mask requirements may be imposed.

Economic Measures

Key Policy Responses as of June 3, 2021

FISCAL

A National Emergency Preparedness and Response Plan for a COVID-19 outbreak was prepared, with the support of international development partners. Key measures focus on strengthening surveillance at ports of entry; reinforcing capacity for COVID-19 detection; increasing the number of quarantine centers; expanding treatment facilities and acquiring needed medical equipment; and conducting a communication campaign. The implementation cost of the National Emergency Plan is estimated at US$ 47 million (0.3 percent of GDP).

In addition, a COVID-19 economic response plan was announced on April 6, 2020. The Plan aims at strengthening infrastructure in the health sector, protecting the most vulnerable, and supporting the private sector, notably small and medium enterprises. Although the authorities original estimates of the cost of the Plan was of about US$ 328 million (2.3 percent of GDP), this cost was subsequently estimated at 1.8 percent of GDP in the context of the RCF and the 5th-6th review under the ECF. Key measures included: bolstering the health system; supporting the private sector, through the introduction of temporary exonerations on taxes, social contributions and payment of utilities for firms in the most affected sectors; and supporting the most vulnerable households, through the implementation of labor-intensive public works, provision of cash transfers, and a waiver on the payment of utilities for the most vulnerable.

On June 23, the authorities announced additional measures, including a three-month extension of some measures initially planned till end-June including: support to the agricultural sector; exemption from the payment of utility bills for businesses in the tourism and hotel sectors; reduction of taxes on health and life insurance contracts; exemption from the payment of the apprenticeship tax as an incentive to retain workers; and import duty exemption on fishing equipment.

Some selected measures are anticipated to continue in 2021 – additional cash transfers to protect the most vulnerable will be scaled up, together with financial support from the World Bank, as there were some delays in implementing this part of the response plan in 2020.

The authorities are working on procuring Covid-19 vaccines, with some assistance from development partners, including the COVAX initiative. The cost of vaccine procurement and rollout to reach about 20 percent of the population is estimated at roughly $80 million (0.5 percent of GDP). Development partners are expected to support Guinea's efforts to vaccinate a significant share of its population in 2021, providing grants and concessional loans.

MONETARY AND MACRO-FINANCIAL

As announced in the April 6 COVID-19 economic response plan, the central bank of the Republic of Guinea (BCRG) unveiled on April 16 2020 some support measures to mitigate the economic impact of the pandemic on the financial sector. The policy rate and the reserve requirement ratio were both reduced by 100 basis points to 11.5 and 15 percent respectively. In March 2021, the policy rate was kept unchanged, and the reserve requirement increased back to 16 percent. The BCRG allows banks, for the duration of the pandemic, to count against their reserves credit provided to SMEs, businesses in the services sector affected (hotels, restaurants and transport), and major importers of food and pharmaceutical products. The central bank also announced a program of liquidity injection, including a window for the provision of long-term liquidity.

Moreover, the central bank announced measures to mitigate prudential requirements. These include: lowering the liquidity coverage ratio from 100 to 80 percent; suspending the NPL classification for businesses and individuals impacted by the pandemic and the provisioning of such loans; and relaxing the limits on foreign exchange positions (from 20 to 25 percent of capital for the net position, and 10 to 12.5 percent for the position in each currency). Dividend payments have been suspended while financial institutions are required to limit technical assistance fees paid to their parent companies to the strict minimum. Financial institutions have been granted a three-month postponement of the payment of supervision -related fees as well as contributions to the deposit insurance scheme. Insurance companies are to postpone the payment of premia falling due during the epidemic and to suspend policies at the request of customers. Identification requirements for e-money accounts have been eased and companies are encouraged to reduce e-money transfer fees.

Civic Freedom Tracker

STATE OF EMERGENCY

The president announces a 30-day nationwide "state of emergency" due to the spread of the coronavirus. A nationwide curfew will be in place from 9pm to 5am beginning March 30, and gatherings of over 20 people are prohibited for 14 days (renewable). (See primary source or citation here)