Senegalese President Macky Sall has quarantined himself for two weeks as a precaution after he came in contact with someone who tested positive for the novel coronavirus, a presidential statement confirmed on late Wednesday, reported Reuters.
As per the statement, Sall tested negative for the virus but he will still self-isolate himself for 15 days based on medical recommendations.
Earlier on Wednesday, Yeya Diallo, a lawmaker in parliament, announced that she had tested positive for the virus and appealed people to take essential personal measures such as maintaining hygiene and social distancing.
After originating in China’s Wuhan in December last year, COVID-19 has spread to at least 188 countries and regions. The pandemic has killed over 482,000 people worldwide, with an excess of 9.4 million confirmed cases and greater than 4.7 million recoveries, according to figures compiled by US-based Johns Hopkins University.
On Tuesday, Senegalese Ministry of Health and Social Actions registered 64 new confirmed cases of Covid-19 in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of cases to 6,034.
Ministry spokesperson Dr Alyose Waly Diouf said a total of 1,045 tests were done in the last 24 hours in two different labs, among which 64 returned positive, including 51 follow-up contact cases and 13 community transmission ones.
The number of patients discharged from hospitals increased by 93, taking the total number of recoveries to up to 4,046. The death toll from Covid-19 has reached 89 with three additional deaths registered.
Senegalese President Macky Sall has warned of the devastating impact of Covid-19 on Senegalese economy.
“The impact on economy is huge. During the past five years, Senegal had an annual growth of no lower than 6.5 percent. Now, even if everything goes well, the growth will be 1 percent,” the Senegalese president said. “If the pandemic continues, we will be in recession. Without any doubt.”
