Coronavirus: Angola bars Nigerians from visiting

Angola has barred nationals of countries with cases of the novel coronavirus disease from visiting any time soon.

Angola’s Ministry of Health released a note this week announcing that from March 3, 2020, and for preventive reasons, “it is forbidden the entrance in Angola of citizens coming into the country directly from China, South Korea, Iran, Italy, Nigeria, Egypt and Algeria.”

According to Agencia Angola Press, “the document clarifies that all the air transport companies must communicate with their clients about this measure.

“The note also explains that the airliners that violate this measure will be made responsible for the immediate repatriation of any citizens they can have on board and which fall under the said category.

“On the other hand, the National Public Health Directorate must make daily updates of the list of countries included in this preventive measure category, having into account the increase of cases of COVID-19 (initially called Coronavirus) worldwide.”

Containment is still possible

Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation and largest economy, confirmed its first case of coronavirus on Thursday, February 27, 2020.

The patient is an Italian who flew into the country for business on a Turkish Airline flight.

Nigeria’s coronavirus case in Lagos, the country’s densely populated city of over 20 million inhabitants, is the first in sub-Saharan Africa.

Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu; during an inspection visit to the Emergency Operations Centre and Biosecurity Unit at Mainland Infectious Disease Hospital Yaba, on Sunday, March 1, 2020. (Twitter @jidesanwoolu) Pulse Nigeria

North African countries Tunisia, Algeria and Egypt have also confirmed cases of the virus.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), the risk of a global spread of the coronavirus and the impact of the disease is now “very high”, the highest level of alarm, but containment is still possible.

Africa’s Centres for Disease Control and Prevention says it has activated its emergency operation centre for a continent where healthcare capacity is limited or overburdened; and early detection is vital.

Over 89,000 people have been infected by the coronavirus globally as of Monday, March 2, 2020, the majority in mainland China, which is the epicenter of the disease.

Outside of China, the coronavirus has spread to 66 countries, with more than 8,800 cases and 130 deaths.

The coronavirus has so far killed over 3,000 people on a global scale.