Vanuatu and New Caledonia Tamtam Bubble is currently put on hold after the recent announcement of the COVID-19 cases that were detected in Vanuatu are now in quarantine. While New Caledonia also recorded their first Covid-19 outbreak community cases and the country is in locked down. As of 14 March 2021, 93 COVID-19 cases (including 35 cases since 07 March 2021) have been reported by the New Caledonia Government. Locally acquired cases have been reported in the past 14 days. The Tamtam Bubble Communications Team successfully started consultations with local Government Authorities based within communities, including the Port Vila City Municipality Wards and their respective Zones, Shefa Provincial Government Areas on Efate and the Offshore Islands. A total of 65 communities were listed for the community outreach programme in the island of Efate. A similar consultation will also be conducted in other provinces in Vanuatu.

This clearly indicate that the Tamtam Travel Bubble Community Outreach that was scheduled to start on 10^th of March 2021, is now postpone until further notice. Concerns and responses from the communities is highly recommended, including relevant Government Health and Border control officials. This is very important for any further risk assessment and guidance to be provided by the National Health Technical Advisory Group (HTAG) under the Ministry of Health. However, since the outreach is postponed, Vanuatu Tamtam Travel Bubble Committee will continue to work in establishing standard operating procedure for the Tamtam Bubble, ready to respond when the Vanuatu of Government decides to open New Caledonia or another country. Ongoing bilateral dialogue between the technical teams of the Vanuatu and the New Caledonia governments will be maintained.

Efforts to explore and embark on options aimed at bringing in new money into the domestic economy to help maintain existing developments and improve Government’s services to its citizens is critical. Vanuatu is not alone with this struggle and will continue to pursue dialogue in this regard.

A training platform supported by the Ministry of Health to deliver support from medical professionals towards businesses, particularly in tourism sector, during the global COVID-19 Pandemic has been established. The Vanuatu Foreign Investment Promotion Agency (VFIPA) strongly supports this initiative and encouraged interested businesses to continue registering for the Safe Business Operations (SBO) training.