Coronavirus updates: Burundi imposes a 14 days quarantine on all European travelers
The Briefing Issue #57, Thursday, March 12, 2020
Dear Readers,
The Burundian authorities have announced that passengers coming from and having stayed in France, as well as in all the other countries of the European Union, in China, South Korea, Iran, and Japan, during the 14 days preceding their arrival in Burundi, will be quarantined for 14 days upon arrival in Burundi.
Burundi has quarantined 32 people as of March 12, since the decision was made to isolate passengers arriving from certain countries, a government statement said without revealing nationalities.
On arrival at Melchior Ndandaye International Airport, passengers from the countries mentioned are transported by bus to the "Hotel Source du Nil" where they are confined for 14 days with a ban on receiving visits and going out outside the hotel.
All institutions and businesses are required to put in place handwashing facilities and report any suspected cases, the health ministry said the measure is intended to prevent the spread of the virus and emphasized that Burundi does not have any confirmed cases.
On March 11, the World Health Organization (WHO) called the Covid-19 coronavirus epidemic a "pandemic” and warned that countries around the globe are not acting as aggressively as they should contain the virus.
"We are deeply concerned both by the alarming levels of spread and severity and by the alarming levels of inaction," WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.
The announcement came as the Trump administration is discouraging all nonessential travel to Europe, raising the region to a Level 3 travel advisory. German Chancellor Angela Merkel warned Wednesday that as much as 70 percent of her country's population could wind up infected.
To date, tens of thousands of cases have been confirmed in China and in many other countries (see list of countries concerned and review on the website of the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control).
Fabrice Iranzi
Founding Editor, RegionWeek.com
IN THE REGION
Kenya Airways on Thursday suspended flights on its Rome-Geneva route in response to developments following the coronavirus outbreak. In a statement, the national carrier said the suspension was effective March 13 to April 30. "We will rebook [customers] on alternative flights, extend a full refund to those who would like to cancel their travel or waive booking fees for those willing to reschedule their flights," KQ said. It said it will continue operating its other flights, sometimes with adjustments. (Daily Nation)
Uganda has restricted visitors from some countries with what it terms high cases of coronavirus, including China, France, Germany, Iran, Italy, South Korea, and Spain."The government has decided to ask travelers from the affected countries not to come to Uganda because the high cases they are reporting can easily be imported into the country," the country's health minister Jane Ruth Aceng said in a statement earlier this week. A revised advisory released Wednesday by the Health Ministry increased the number of high-risk countries from 7 to 16, including the United States and the UK. The other countries include the Netherlands, Sweden, Norway, Austria, and Malaysia. In the new statement, travelers from these countries are urged to consider "postponing non-essential travel to Uganda." (CNN)
The Kisutu Resident Magistrate Court in Tanzania convicted nine Chadema leaders and legislators Tuesday of making “seditious statements.”Principal Resident Magistrate Thomas Simba was convinced that they were unlawfully assembled, rioting and making seditious statements. The Chadema party is an opposition party to Tanzania’s Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party, which is led by the country’s president John Magufuli. The accused, including the Chadema party chairman Freeman Mbowe, must pay 350m Tanzanian shillings (USD $152,000) or serve five-month prison sentences. (Jurist)
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