FACT BOX: What Africa is doing to fight the deadly coronavirus outbreak

One of the nurses with protective gear inside the isolation ward. Picture: Courtney Africa/African News Agency (ANA)

One of the nurses with protective gear inside the isolation ward. Picture: Courtney Africa/African News Agency (ANA)

Published Mar 18, 2020

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The World Health Organization has

warned of the risk that Covid-19 could overwhelm strained public

health systems in sub-Saharan Africa. Here is a selection of

measures countries are taking to prepare for the virus and limit

its spread.

SOUTH AFRICA

With more cases than any other country in sub-Saharan

Africa, South Africa is barring entry to foreign

travellers coming from or transiting through high-risk countries

including Italy, Iran, South Korea, Spain, Germany, France,

Switzerland, the United States, the United Kingdom and China,

according to an advisory issue by the foreign ministry on

Tuesday.

Travellers who arrived from these countries since

mid-February must report for testing. Those arriving from

medium-risk countries – Portugal, Hong Kong and Singapore – will

undergo high intensity screening.

South Africans are advised to cancel or postpone all

non-essential foreign travel. The government has also ordered

schools to close early for the Easter break and will prohibit

gatherings of more than 100 people.

NIGERIA

Africa's most populous nation has stepped up surveillance

and is preparing for the possibility of an influx of patients.

Lagos, the biggest city with some 20 million people, could

handle 2,000 cases, said Bamidele Mutiu, who heads a regional

biosafety team. To do this, they would need to use two camps

previously housing people displaced by violence, he said.

Authorities are checking the temperature of anyone who

arrives at Nigeria's airports, ports and land borders.

Those coming from high-risk countries such as China, Iran,

Italy and Spain are asked to self-isolate for 14 days, said

Tarik Mohammed, a technical advisor at the Niger Centre for

Disease Control. If they develop symptoms, a laboratory team

will visit them and collect a sample for testing.

Medics work at the Coronavirus Isolation Unit at the Coast Provincial General Hospital (CPGH) in Mombasa, Kenya. Picture: Fred Mutune/Xinhua

KENYA

The East African country is suspending travel from any

nation with reported COVID-19 cases.

Only Kenyan citizens, foreigners with residence permits and

United Nations workers will be allowed to come in, provided they

proceed on self-quarantine, the government said this week.

Schools and universities are closing, and public minibuses

are providing hand sanitizer.

ETHIOPIA

Ethiopian Airlines said on its website that medics stationed

at Addis Ababa Bole International Airport, a key regional

transit hub, carry out continuous health screenings 24/7.

The government in the Horn of Africa country has closed

schools nationwide and offered to transport people on government

buses to ease congestion on public transport.

RWANDA

The East African country is flooding its capital, Kigali,

with portable sinks for hand-washing at bus stops, restaurants,

banks and shops. Schools, universities, churches and courts are

closed nationwide. Some flights are suspended.

CAMEROON

From Wednesday, Cameroon, in central Africa, will close

land, air and sea borders indefinitely, the government said in

statement on Tuesday. International flights will be grounded,

with the exception of cargo planes. Schools and restaurants will

shut, and gatherings of more than 50 people are banned.

People walk at a vegetable market to cushion against running out of stock in the spreading of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) fears, in Addis Ababa. Picture: Tiksa Negeri/Reuters

LIBERIA

The West African country is applying lessons learned

fighting a devastating Ebola outbreak in 2014-15.

"We were one of the first countries to start enhanced

screening at the airport on Jan. 25," said Mosoka P. Fallah,

acting director general of the National Public Health Institute

of Liberia.

More than 200 people have been trained as field

epidemiologists and check for diseases in all 90 districts, said

Tolbert Nyenswah, senior research associate at the Johns Hopkins

Bloomberg School of Public Health in the United States and

former incident manager for Liberia’s Ebola response.

"If there is a case of a suspected disease, a sample is sent

to a lab and tested."

There are hand-washing stations at public places including

stores, shops, schools, hospitals, restaurant and government

offices.

SENEGAL

Has been taking all passengers' temperatures since Jan. 28

and asks for contact details, so officials can reach them if

someone else on the plane tests positive, a spokesman for Dakar

airport said.

GHANA

Has implemented some of the most stringent measures in West

Africa with a mandatory 14 days of quarantine for all people

arriving from abroad. Travelers from countries with over 200

cases of coronavirus are barred from entering the country unless

they are Ghanaian citizens or residents.

MAURITANIA

After confirming its first case on March 13, the West

African country closed the international airport, suspended

teaching in schools and universities, and banned weekly markets.

MADAGASCAR

One of the world’s poorest countries, the island nation has

suspended all flights for 30 days, a blow to its tourism

industry.

Reuters

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