Cumulative number of Covid-19 cases at 194: Mozambique reports 26 new infections, largest number in one day

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Cumulative number of Covid-19 cases at 194: Mozambique reports 26 new infections, largest number in one day

10:45 CAT | 25 May 2020

Foto-Notícia-24-05-2020-Ilesh-Jani-1024x682

Photo: INS

Mozambique on Sunday announced another 26 cases of infection with the new coronavirus, the largest daily increase in the cumulative total, which now stands at 194 cases, Director-General of the National Institute of Health (INS) Ilesh Jani has announced.

“It is the first time that we have such a high number of cases in a single day. There were weeks when we did not have so many cases,” he said. This indicates that the epidemic in Mozambique “is entering a new phase”, with greater local transmission.

The cumulative total rose to 194, with 51 cases recovered, and no deaths. This means that the number of active cases in the country stands at 143. Of the 26 cases announced yesterday, nine people have no symptoms of illness and the rest have mild to moderate signs.

Of the new cases announced, 11 relate to the natural gas project construction site in Afungi, Cabo Delgado – nine from new tests on essential workers, and two detected among those already quarantined in the provincial capital, Pemba.

Total Oil, which leads the consortium building the complex to harvest natural gas in the region, has reduced work to a minimum, but 415 essential workers (about half of the total) remained at the site, Ilesh Jani explained.

The Afungi workers have been subjected to new tests, but the new cases have registered only low viral load – that is, with no signs of new transmission chains, he added. The camp is maintaining the strictest measures and hopes to be able to declare the outbreak over in the next few days.

In addition, there are 11 other cases in Cabo Delgado province, two in Palma and another nine in Pemba, bringing to 22 the number of cases announced in Cabo Delgado on Sunday alone,

Among the nine cases in Pemba, the provincial capital, four are in the range of 5 to 14 years old, two males and two females, Ilesh Jani announced.

Yesterday also saw the announcement of the first three cases in the province of Nampula and another case in the province of Maputo.

Niassa province in the north, and one of the most isolated provinces in the country, and Zambézia, in the centre and Mozambique’s second most populous province with 5.1 million out of a total of 28 million inhabitants, are the only ones that have not yet officially registered any case.

The total number of tests on suspected cases since the beginning of the pandemic now stands at 8,463.

The country has two patients hospitalised with Covid-19, one in Maputo and the other in Inhambane, and both are “evolving favourably” and “may soon be discharged,” Rosa Marlene added.

Cabo Delgado has a cumulative total of 112 cases, Maputo city has 41 and Maputo province 21, Sofala 10, Inhambane and Nampula three each, Tete two, and Manica and Gaza each record one.

Among the 26 new cases, 24 are of Mozambican nationality, one is of South African nationality and one is of American nationality.

Mozambique has been living under State of Emergency regulations since April 1st, extended until the end of May. Leisure facilities are closed and all meetings banned, and the public urged to stay at home wherever possible.

Public transport capacity is capped, the use of masks in public is mandatory, schools are closed and the issuing of entry visas to the country has been suspended.