While face masks, caps and dresses have become a common sight in most countries during the pandemic years, Tuvalu – one of the few countries that has never had a Covid case – is rare, mostly worn by airport workers such as Nome, whose job it is to unload cargo. Nome knows that if Covid arrives in his tiny country, about 4,000 kilometers from Australia with a population of about 12,000, he will most likely fly through one of the planes carrying medical supplies and food or repatriate Tuvaluans stranded abroad. “I love my job, but now with Covid, I feel insecure and worried about my family at home. And I am very careful when handling loads, I always make sure to follow the correct procedures when I take out the PPE “, says Nome. “As soon as the plane leaves, we all test at the airport and as soon as the result is negative, I feel so relieved and just in a hurry to go home to continue my work at home and enjoy the rest of the day.” Petaia Nome with cargo carrier at Sir Toaripi Lauti International Airport, Tuvalu. Photo: Puaseiese Adrienne Pedro / The Guardian According to the World Health Organization, the Covid-free countries in the world are limited to North Korea and Turkmenistan – whose claims to be Covid-free are disputed – and three Pacific island nations: Tuvalu, Nauru and the Lesser Federated States of Mikro. . like some other island territories. The runway at Funafuti – the capital and main atoll of Tuvalu – runs the entire length of the island, which is very narrow, just a few meters wide at some points. When airplanes do not take off or land, the runway is used as a soccer field or for dry cleaning. Sometimes people sleep even when the weather is very hot. But since the pandemic began, part of the runway has been completely out of bounds. The hangar, about 300 meters from the airport, has become a quarantine center and is guarded by police. Two Tuvalu fishermen land on Tepuka Island, Tuvalu. Photo: Ashley Cooper / Corbis / Getty Images “Whenever I take over the quarantine and the airport areas, I always make sure that I and my other colleagues follow the standard operating procedures,” said police officer Hililogo Tepou. He believes that there is always a possibility that the virus could reach through planes and cargo ships, but not if the front lines take serious precautions. “Meanwhile, in addition to work duties, I cruise the island, drink and party with friends and just do what I love. “I think Tuvalu is so lucky to be free of the virus and we should always be grateful for that.”
“I made the right decision to go home”
Tuvalu closed its borders in early 2020 and has not reopened since. This gave the country time to prepare, as about 90% of its adult population is fully vaccinated and 85% of young people aged 12-17 have received their first dose. Two of Tuvalu’s outer islands have closed their borders to incompletely vaccinated people from other islands, but other than that, schools and other services are functioning normally and people are living basically normal lives. Vaccines arriving in Tuvalu from Australia. Photo: Puaseiese Adrienne Pedro / The Guardian While most Tuvaluans are happy with the government’s decision to close the country’s borders in early 2020, it comes at a cost. Prior to the pandemic, there were three flights a week to Tuvalu from Fiji – Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Women selling local handicrafts set up tables near the airport to show necklaces, hair clips, garlands, small rugs and baskets for sale. Anita Filigina, one of the women selling handicrafts, said she was making a good income from her sales. “I still sell my crafts just outside my house and at the airport when there is a plane and I get less. “Fortunately I have another business as my husband is a fisherman”, said Filigina. De’Allande Pedro left Fiji, where he was going to school, when the pandemic started and returned to Tuvalu. Photo: Puaseiese Adrienne Pedro / The Guardian She is grateful that Tuvalu is free of Covid, especially since crowds gather at her home whenever she has fish to sell. “I sell my fish to the public without worrying at all because I know that everyone who comes to my house is not sick and I am grateful to the government that has handled the country well,” Filigina said. When Tuvalu closed its borders, Tuvaluans living abroad immediately gathered in Fiji to be repatriated. The last flight from Fiji to Tuvalu in March 2020 was De’Allande Pedro, then an 11th year student in Fiji. He returned to Tuvalu where he began attending the only Funafuti high school. “Looking back, I feel like I made the right decision to go home,” he said. “My school in Fiji was closed for almost a year.” “I am now doing my undergraduate studies on the campus of the University of South Pacific Tuvalu without any worries at all, because I have access to my courses online as everything is offered online and I can always visit local teachers to help me,” said Pedro. . A young boy walks back from school to Tuvalu’s capital, Funafuti. Photo: Sean Gallagher / The Guardian When he is not studying, Pedro plays rugby on the runway, fishing and horseback riding around the island at night. Dr Tapugao Falefou, chairman of the Covid-19 national working group, said the border would remain closed “until further notice”, with the exception of some repatriation flights, funded by the Taiwanese government, which the government chooses to operate before another Covid outbreak hits Fiji.
