By Spy Uganda
There is high tension in South Sudan after the country registered the first Coronavirus (COVID-19) death on Thursday, according to health authorities in Juba.
Sources in Juba reveal that on Thursday, South Sudan recorded 28 new infections of Coronavirus, bringing the total confirmed cases of the deadly respiratory disease to 231.
South Sudan’s high-level task force on COVID-19 stated that “the Public Health Laboratory on Thursday 14th May 2020 released 214 test results. Of these, 28 cases, 27 South Sudanese and one Kenyan, were confirmed positive including one death”.
Makur Matur Koriom, the Health Minister, said the deceased was a 51-year-old high profile South Sudanese personality, but did not divulge more details.
The task force indicated that of the newly confirmed cases, two were contacts, five alerts, one suspect and 20 from Juba zones.
According to health authorities, Juba remains the epicentre of Coronavirus in the country. On Wednesday, the authorities said two cases had been confirmed in Protection of Civilians (PoC) sites in the capital despite the measures implemented by the United Nations Mission in the country.
However, despite the outbreak in South Sudan, the government decided to ease Coronavirus lockdown rules and to open the airports for domestic and international flights so as to mitigate the effects of economic recession the pandemic brought about.
Apart from Uganda, several other countries within the East African region have registered COVID-19 deaths.
