Covid-19: Tanzania Government designates hospitals

Dodoma. The government has designated special hospitals in every administrative zone to handle any possible cases of coronavirus as part of precautionary measures against the viral pandemic.

Covid-19 – which was first reported in Wuhan, China, last December – is now a global health concern, having spread to at least 100 countries, including neigbouring Kenya and Rwanda.

“We have started taking various measures against Covid-19, including allocating special health facilities,” said Dr Hassan Abbasi, the Information, Culture, Arts and Sports permanent secretary, in Dodoma yesterday.

However, he did not name the designated zonal hospitals on the grounds that Tanzania has not reported any Covid-19 case.

Dr Abbasi - who also serves as the government chief spokesperson - noted that the government has also deployed health specialists in each of the country’s entry points, including airports, ports and border crossings.

“The main task of the deployed specialists is to investigate all passengers entering the country, and those who would test positive would be admitted in designated hospitals for furthur investigations,” he said.

“We have not ignored this disease, and I assure you that the government is taking all necessary measures against Covid-19,” he said - stressing that there is no case of Covid-19 in Tanzania so far.

Dr Abbasi called on Tanzanians to continue taking precautionary measures as directed by the ministry of Health - and stop believing “fake news” circulating on social media which claim that Covid-19 does have a cure. Already 100 countries worldwide have reported cases of the disease, with China, Italy, Iran, South Korea and Spain recording the highest numbers.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), nearly 6,000 people have died from the viral disease, about 60 percent of the deaths reported in China.

“The main precautinary measure needed in Tanzania is to protect oneself against the disease,”Dr Abbasi said.

Health minister Ummy Mwalimu confirmed over the weekend that there is no Covid-19 case reported in Tanzania so far, after a recent suspected patient being tested negative in Kilimanjaro Region.

She said this after passengers who arrived at the Kilimanjaro International Airport (KIA) from Kenya – including two Danish and two Norwegians – tested negative for Covid-19.