Ethiopia, Ghana and gabon confirm first case of coronavirus

Ethiopia, Gabon and Ghana have all confirmed their first cases of coronavirus earlier today, as the pandemic continues to spread.

The index case of coronavirus in Ethiopia is said to be a 48-year-old Japanese man who arrived Ethiopia from Burkina Faso last week.
Liya Kebede, Ethiopia’s health minister said at a press briefing;

“We confirm that a Japanese man who is 48 years of age, has tested positive for the virus. This is the first case in Ethiopia.
“The Japanese man arrived in Ethiopia from Burkina Faso last week, and he is now receiving medical treatment. He is in good condition.”

Gabon’s government said in a statement its case was a 27-year-old Gabonese man who had returned from France on March 8, while Ghana’s health ministry said its two cases were people who had returned recently from Norway and Turkey.

“These are imported cases of COVID-19. Both patients are currently being kept in isolation and are stable,” the ministry said in a statement.

Coronavirus cases have also been confirmed in Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Senegal, Cameroon, Togo, South Africa, Burkina Faso and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The global death toll is now nearly 5,000 with more than 132,000 confirmed cases according to the World Health Organization.