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PARIS (Reuters) – The World Health Organization is concerned about the spread of the new coronavirus community in a significant number of West African countries, the organization’s regional head said on Thursday.
FILE PHOTO: A logo is displayed at the headquarters of the World Health Organization (WHO) before a meeting of the Emergency Committee on the new coronavirus (2019-nCoV) in Geneva, Switzerland, January 30, 2020. REUTERS / Denis Balibouse
Sub-Saharan Africa has confirmed around 23,800 cases with more than 900 deaths. Several countries have issued selective blockades in some major cities, as well as dusk curfews and restrictions on inter-city travel, but did not reach national blockades as in most European countries and South Africa.
On Tuesday, the Senegalese government said in its daily outbreak report that a case of community infection in the country’s Casamance region contaminated 25 other people.
“We are very concerned about West Africa, where we are seeing some community spread, in a significant number of countries compared to others,” Matshidiso Moeti said at a press conference, without identifying the countries.
Senegal, with a population of nearly 16 million, has recorded 933 cases of COVID-19 since the outbreak, with 9 deaths through Thursday. The government declared a state of emergency, closed schools and issued restrictions on meetings and travel, but cases have continued to rise.
After a meeting with ministers on Wednesday, Senegalese President Macky Sall said he had called for new, more coercive measures around intercity transport, markets and public spaces due to the “proliferation of risky behavior”.
Other West African countries such as Ghana and Burkina Faso have begun lifting the blockade measures due to concerns that a prolonged closure could have a lasting impact on their economies.
WHO’s Moeti said decisions to impose or remove restrictions could be extremely politically challenging, but governments should use the data.
“When a government decides not to block a city, it must be aware that there would be consequences in terms of the spread of the virus.”
“We hope that these decisions are made with the overall balance in mind between allowing economies to grow and halting the spread of a pandemic that can have a profound long-term impact on the economy,” he added.
He highlighted some encouraging signs in other parts of Africa and said that certain countries have recorded zero cases in recent weeks, but “it is true that relatively small countries like Namibia, Mauritania and Seychelles.”
“They have implemented some measures, early measures that start with testing and tracing contacts that have produced some results,” he added.
Bate Felix Report; Editing by Alexandra Hudson
