Two Returnees from India Test Positive for COVID-19

Uganda's confirmed COVID-19 cases have risen to 911 after nine samples tested positive on Thursday. Two of the confirmed cases are Indians who returned to the country on July 1, 2020, from Mumbai.   

They were among a bigger group of 187 people that arrived in the country on Wednesday. According to the health ministry, the two were under quarantine at the time of testing. The other cases are four truck drivers that were picked from points of entry while three cases were from communities.

The detection of positive cases among travellers comes at a time that the World Health Organisation is cautioning African countries against resuming air travel. While speaking to journalists yesterday, Dr Matshidiso Moeti, the WHO Africa region director urged countries to assess the benefit of opening borders because this could lead to an increase in reported cases which could, in turn, overwhelm already weak health systems. 

According to WHO, 39 African countries closed their borders and stopped air travel as a means of forestalling the spread of COVID-19. Since countries began resuming air and water travel, some countries like the Seychelles have recorded an increase in the number of COVID-19 cases recorded.   

Dr Richard Mugahi, the head of COVID-19 institutional quarantine at the ministry of health told URN that people should not be worried about the spread of the disease because the government is taking all the necessary precautions to make sure that people entering the country do not spread the disease if they have it.

"Because some of the travellers failed to secure negative travel certificates we have allowed everyone to come, even those who do not have them. However, everyone coming will be quarantined and tested for the disease at least twice before they can have any contact with other members of the community, " he said.     

Uganda's first cases of the disease were recorded among travellers who were returning from Dubai and other parts of the world.  As of today, 849 people have been discharged according to the ministry of health.