Africa Records Over 215,000 Cases + Other #COVID19 Updates

681 new cases of COVID-19 recorded in Nigeria

According to the Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC), 345 cases were recorded in Lagos, 51 in Rivers, 48 in Ogun, 47 in Gombe, 36 in Oyo, 31 in Imo, 28 in Delta, 23 in Kano, 18 in Bauchi, 12 in Edo, 12 in Katsina, 9 in Kaduna, 7 in Anambra, 5 in Jigawa, 4 in Kebbi, 4 in Ondo and 1 in Nasarawa State.

In total, Nigeria has recorded 14,554 cases of COVID-19. 4,494 patients have been discharged from various isolation centres across the country, while 387 deaths have been recorded.

A breakdown of cases by state can be found via https://t.co/zQrpNeOfet#TakeResponsibility pic.twitter.com/2Hgj9ohzjC

— NCDC (@NCDCgov) June 11, 2020

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Thursday’s press briefing from the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19

At the PTF press conference in Abuja, the DG of NCDC, Chikwe Ikwehazu said:

First set of GeneXpert machines being adapted for Covid-19 testing will commence testing on June 14. The last two weeks have been spent distributing the imported cartridges for the conversion. So, testing capacity set to rise. Within the last one week we’ve undertaken the biggest distribution of PPEs since the COVID Response began; enough to last every State and every facility for about a month. We will continue to support the States, everything we are doing is for the States.

While the National Coordinator of PTF, Sani Aliyu said:

We gave the domestic airlines a window of 3 weeks to prepare, we believe they’re still preparing. We did not say flights would definitely start on June 21. We expect the airlines to come back to us by June 21 to tell us if they’re ready to fly or not.

The number of cases we have is a reflection of the number of tests we do. Looking at the data, the positivity rate – i.e. ratio of positives to total number of tests – has stayed the same. So we’re not surprised by the increasing number of cases. We are testing more.

The only thing that will stop this pandemic is behaviour change. There is no vaccine.

Sani Aliyu explained why schools could not be reopened. He said:

On the school issue, there is a very good evidence and you can look globally as well; schools usually are the last to be opened when it comes to pandemic situations. Why? One, it is very difficult to control children. Two, they are more likely to be asymptomatic and, therefore, they are more likely to transmit. A lot of them stay with their grandparents; the very group that we are trying to protect.

The Chairman of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 and SGF, Boss Mustapha,  at the PTF press conference in Abuja, warned that a majority of Nigerians were at the risk of contracting coronavirus, Punch reports.

He stated:

Nigeria witnessed a spike in a number of confirmed cases when the number of recorded cases jumped to 663 on Tuesday, 9th June 2020. This number gives us cause for concern as a task force and as a nation.

In the PTF briefing on Monday, 8th June 2020, I emphasized that a great majority of Nigerians are still susceptible to COVID-19 and cautioned that if we allow it to transmit easily among us, it may be even more deadly. That admonition remains very valid and we still underscore vigilance and self-preservation.

He also appealed to state governments to ensure compliance with the PTF protocols, which would stop the transmission of COVID-19.

The PTF continues to monitor the level of activities and compliance with the guidelines nationwide. Consultations will continue and tonight, I will be holding another round of video conference with the team of governors appointed by the National Economic Council to interface with the PTF.

The PTF will re-emphasize its appeal to governments at the sub-national level as well as our security agencies to enforce the guidelines and protocols firmly. The PTF would also be meeting with the heads of these agencies to further fine-tune strategies to ensure compliance.

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Africa Records Over 215,000 COVID-19 Cases

The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Africa has reached 215,000, and at least 5,800 people have died according to statistics released by the World Health Organisation’s office for the African Region via Twitter on Friday.

The countries with the highest number of cases in the region are South Africa, Nigeria and Algeria.

Over 215,000 confirmed #COVID19 cases on the African continent – with more than 98,000 recoveries & 5,800 deaths. View country figures & more with the WHO African Region COVID-19 Dashboard: https://t.co/V0fkK8dYTg pic.twitter.com/A51jCdDVYw

— WHO African Region (@WHOAFRO) June 12, 2020

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India records the highest single-day increase

According to the Johns Hopkins University tally, India recorded 10,956 coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, the highest single-day increase and the first time the numbers have risen by more 10,000.

The total number of reported coronavirus infections now stands at 297,535 with 8,498 deaths, according to India’s Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. The total number includes 147,194 people who have recovered.

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Pakistan PM assures citizens of stricter monitoring of social distancing and hygiene directives

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has warned citizens that the number of deaths from the coronavirus will continue to rise in the country, as the death toll hit a single-day record of 107 on Thursday.

Addressing the nation, Khan continued to rule out imposing any widespread lockdown, as per the World Health Organization’s advice, saying that instead there would be greater monitoring of social distancing and hygiene directives, with businesses that do not comply being shut down.

Pakistan saw 6,397 new cases of the coronavirus on Thursday, taking its total tally to 125,933. 

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The Maldives to ease lockdown

Health authorities in the Maldives say, residents of the capital, Male, will be allowed to leave their homes without permits starting from June 15 as part of a phased easing of its two-month-old lockdown, Aljazeera reports.

Domestic airports will open, and restaurants and cafes can resume takeaway and delivery services. The Health Protection Agency, however, is advising against visiting family members at their homes and is banning gatherings of more than three people in any public spaces.

Masks are mandatory in public spaces, it added. The Indian Ocean island nation has reported eight deaths and 1,976 infections, of which the vast majority were in the congested capital.

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There are now over 7 million cases of coronavirus around the world

More than 7.48 million people have now been confirmed to have the coronavirus and at least 420,000 have died, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.