Uganda’s ministry of health on Sunday said at least 22 foreign nationals would return to their home countries amid rising fears over the growing coronavirus epidemic.
Uganda, which is hosting the Uganda–Europe Business forum starting Monday, said those sent back were unwilling to quarantine themselves for two weeks.
“Yesterday, we received 22 passengers from the Category 1 countries who were identified by our health workers at the airport. None of them exhibited signs and symptoms of Covid-19. We informed them about our procedure of self-quarantine for 14 days. However, they were not willing to undergo this self-quarantine. Today, they will return to their home countries,” Minister of Health Dr Ruth Aceng said on Sunday.
Currently, Uganda has no confirmed or suspected case of Covid-19.
Uganda’s move came just hours after a German tourist died on Sunday of the novel coronavirus in eastern Egypt, the first death from the epidemic recorded in Africa.
“The 60-year-old German citizen showed symptoms of a fever (and) checked into Hurghada hospital on 6 March before testing positive for Covid-19,” Egypt’s health ministry said in a statement.
