Turkey reschedules the start of the tourist season and international exhibitions
The Turkish authorities are taking the necessary measures to prevent the spread of a new type of coronavirus (COVID-19). This was announced at a joint press conference by the heads of the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the Ministry of Trade of the Republic, Anadolu Turkish News Agency reports. As part of preventive measures, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism recommended tour operators and hotels to postpone the start of the tourist season from the end of March to the end of April. The head of the Department, Mehmet Nuri Ersoy, called on tour operators to postpone the organization of tourist trips to Turkey for the period after April 15. “The risk is serious, taking into account the situation with the epidemic in Europe,” said Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca. However, he explained that one or several cases of infection do not mean that the country is facing an epidemic, and recommended citizens to follow basic preventive measures to minimize the probability of spreading the virus. According to Trade Minister Ruhsar Pekcan, the Agency decided to postpone the international exhibitions held under its patronage, scheduled for the period after March 16, to the end of April. The day before, Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said that the country has detected the first case of infection with a new type of coronavirus. However, the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared a new type of coronavirus pandemic in the world. On Wednesday, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus declared about it during a briefing at the organization’s headquarters in Geneva. “We came to the conclusion that the COVID-19 disease can be considered as a pandemic,” said Dr. Ghebreyesus. The WHO head expressed concern about “the level of spread and severity of the disease”. Mr. Ghebreyesus informed that at the moment the disease covers 114 countries, infected more than 118 thousand people.
