Nepal’s casinos have been granted permission to reopen more than 18 months after shutting their doors due to COVID-19.
According to a report by The Kathmandu Post, the long-awaited milestone follows recent decisions by the Nepal government to allow businesses to open pending implementation of health and safety protocols and the lifting from 23 September of all restrictions on tourism for fully vaccinated travelers, including a 7-day quarantine requirement.
“The casinos [are] allowed to resume operations in line with the decision of the Kathmandu district administration office on September 1 to permit business and social activities by following health safety protocols,” a Tourism Ministry spokesman said.
The Nepal Independent Hotel, Casino & Restaurant Workers’ Union said around a dozen casinos have already reopened with more expected to follow suit in the coming days and weeks. The government has also waived an annual royalty fee for the fiscal year ended 30 June 2021 for all casinos that had been regularly paying their annual fee up until the start of the pandemic. Only eight or nine casinos qualify for such a waiver, the tourism department said.
Nepal’s casino industry is said to employ around 15,000 workers, most of whom have been furloughed for the past 18 months.
Nepal’s daily COVID-19 cases peaked at more than 9,300 in May but have since dropped below 1,000, with 898 new cases reported Thursday.
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