By Frank Kamuntu
The president of the Democratic Republic of Congo closed the
country’s borders and imposed a state of emergency on Tuesday to contain the
coronavirus outbreak, following other African nations that have imposed strict
measures in recent days.
The virus is spreading quickly across Africa, infecting more than 1,700 people
across 45 countries, challenging already fragile healthcare systems. Senegal
and Ivory Coast on Monday declared their own states of emergency, imposing
curfews and travel restrictions on their populations.
Over 40 people have contracted the virus in the DRC and three have been
killed, raising concerns of a widespread outbreak, especially in the crowded
capital Kinshasa where social distancing is an alien phenomenon.
“Coronavirus does not need a passport, visa or voter’s card to circulate
in our house,” President Felix Tshisekedi said in a speech to the nation
on Tuesday. “We find ourselves at war with an invisible adversary.”
The president banned internal passenger flights and river transport to and from
Kinshasa, where all 45 of the known cases have been found. Last week, he
suspended commercial flights from other countries with the virus, banned large
gatherings and closed clubs, restaurants and bars.
