The US State Department has scrapped its travel warnings for certain countries, and instead launched a four-level travel advisory programme.
Explaining the revised system, State Department official, Michelle Bernier-Toth, told US reporters: “Over the years, we’ve come to recognise that sometimes our various documents were not readily understood. We also needed to make sure that the information was more easily understood, putting it into plain language, making it clearer why we were ranking countries, why we were citing them as a threat or a risk.”
She said the method of assessing travel risks had not changed. Advisories are based on information from intelligence agencies, US embassies and host countries' governments.
Kenya
Kenya is placed in the second tier, under the new system. When visiting countries in that grouping, US citizens are urged to “exercise increased caution”.
They are told that violent crime can occur at any time and that police often lack the capacity to respond to criminal incidents. The new advisory flatly warns against travel to the “Kenya-Somalia border and some coastal areas, due to terrorism.”
The counties of Mandera, Wajir, Garissa, Tana River and Lamu are included in the no-go area, along with parts of Kilifi County north of Malindi. It advises US citizens to “reconsider travel to the Nairobi neighbourhood of Eastleigh at all times and Old Town in Mombasa at night, due to crime”.
Travellers should carefully consider whether to use the Likoni ferry in Mombasa.
Tanzania
Tanzania is placed in the level-two group along with Kenya. US travellers are advised to “exercise increased caution in Tanzania due to crime, terrorism, and targeting of LGBTI persons.”
Uganda
Uganda is also placed in the level-two group. There is no mention of threats to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or intersex people, despite a law that was passed in 2013, later annulled by the country's Constitutional Court, which mandated life imprisonment for “aggravated homosexuality”. US citizens are advised to exercise increased caution in Uganda due to crime.
Rwanda
Rwanda is the only East African country given a level-one rating, under which US citizens are advised to “exercise normal precautions”. However, US citizens are advised to “reconsider travel to the Rwanda-Democratic Republic of Congo border due to armed conflict.”
