TANZANIA ON RED ALERT OF COVID-19 AS WHO CALLS FOR INTENSIVE TESTING

By Osoro Nyawangah

Almost four months after the first incident was reported in China and more than 118 countries reporting similar cases, the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) has also been reported in Tanzania imported by a Tanzanian citizen.

Ummy Mwalimu, Minister for Health, Community Development, Gender, Seniors and Children informed the media on Monday March 16 that a 46-year-old Tanzania has been confirmed to having contracted COVID-19 days after her arrival in the city of Arusha.

The Minister said that the patient, arrived in Tanzania on March 15 from Belgium aboard Rwandair plane and landed at Kilimanjaro International Airport (KIA), the thermo scanner did not detect any high temperature.

“She left the country on March 3 to Belgium, while there she visited Sweden and Germany before she went back to Belgium and returned to Tanzania on March 15”. The Minister said.

According to her traveling history, she went into self-isolation but samples tested positive of the Coronavirus, she is now at Mount Meru Hospital where she is undergoing treatment.

The Minister confirmed that the patient’s situation has been contained and that preventive measures have been put in place in the country. 

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), some sort of pneumonia was detected and was reported to the WHO from Wuhan province in China on December 31, 2019 termed as COVID-19. The outbreak was declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on 30 January 2020 and declared a pandemic on March 11.

Until March 13, some 133,000 cases and close to 5,000 deaths have been confirmed from 123 countries.

According to the Director General of the WHO, Tedros Adhanom, the number of cases reported outside China has increased almost 13-fold, and the number of affected countries has almost tripled. 

He noted that, as the numbers of cases and deaths outside of China have quickly risen, many countries including the US have urgently adopted so-called social distancing measures, such as shuttering schools, cancelling events, and having people work from home.

While these measures can slow transmission and allow health care systems to better cope, the WHO Boss warned that they are “not enough to extinguish this pandemic.”

What’s needed is a comprehensive approach, he said. “But we have not seen an urgent-enough escalation in testing, isolation and contact tracing, which is the backbone of the response,” Dr. Tedros said.

“The most effective way to prevent infections and save lives is breaking the chains of transmission,” he went on. “And to do that, you must test and isolate. You cannot fight a fire blindfolded. And we cannot stop this pandemic if we don’t know who is infected.”

Earlier this week, the president of Tanzania, John Magufuli issued a strong alert over the deadly global virus COVID-19, calling on individuals, media, and security organs to play their role in preventive measures.

He also directed the Chief Secretary, John Kijazi, to restrict permission to government officials requesting to travel abroad as the world struggles to fight the pandemic.

President Magufuli further appealed to individual citizens to limit their travels even from one region to another, warning them that the disease has no cure yet.

“There are people who always travel from one region to another, please do not if it is not necessary,” He said emphatically when he was inaugurating a major mechanical workshop for Tanzania People’s Defence Force.

In a related news, supplies of hand sanitizers, medical masks and gloves have all run out, with prices sky high. Pharmacies and clinics are asking for more supplies to arrive in order to meet demands.

Kenya and Ethiopia being the latest countries to confirm COVID-19, Burkina Faso has also confirmed two cases.

Egypt has the highest infections in Africa with close to 70 cases, Algeria has reported 25 cases and South Africa 17 cases. Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Morocco, Nigeria, Togo, and Tunisia have also confirmed cases of COVID-19.