Lesotho is Last African nation to record Covid-19
Lesotho has confirmed its first case of coronavirus – becoming the last country in Africa to record the virus, according to media reports.
The mountain kingdom is completely surrounded by South Africa, which has 11,350 cases of Covid-19, the respiratory illness caused by coronavirus.
The single case resulted from tests done on 81 travelers from South Africa and Saudi Arabia, the health ministry said in a statement, reports the BBC on Wednesday.
For weeks there have been questions about how Lesotho had managed to stave off the disease in spite of the frequent movement of people between the two neighbors.
Hundreds of thousands of Basotho work in South Africa.
The border closed when both countries went into lockdown at the end of March – with only essential workers allowed to move back and forth.
A few weeks ago, Lesotho’s Finance Minister Moeketsi Majoro, in an interview with South Africa’s EyeWitness News, pleaded with those wanting to be repatriated to remain in South Africa – fearing that some might come back with the virus.
– Agencies
Image: Lesotho was in lockdown during April [Photo Getty Image/BBC]
