Over the last week, there have been media reports of a high number of covid-19 related deaths in kano. The figure is said to be in the hundreds. Several pictures of mass burials in kano surfaced online.
Officials in Nigeria’s northern Kano state say the recent sharp rise in deaths was not connected to Covid-19. They say the cause of the deaths investigated so far shows it is not Covid-19.
The Nigerian health minister however said the situation will be closely monitored. The Kano state health ministry later said most of the deaths were caused by complications arising from hypertension, diabetes, meningitis and acute malaria.
The Nigerian Centre for Disease Control has also sent a team to help with the investigations. Authorities are urging the public not to panic.
The country has to date confirmed conformed 1,273 coronavirus cases and 40 deaths.
Three states – the capital, Abuja, the commercial hub of Lagos and Ogun in the south-west – are currently in the fourth week of a lockdown, extended from an initial two weeks.
Inter-state travel has also been banned for two weeks to curtail the spread of coronavirus.
Ghana Covid-19 Situation
Meanwhile, Ghana’s President Nana Akufo-Addo has extended the ban on public gathering by two more weeks to contain the spread of coronavirus.
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The directive comes into effect on Monday. The president last week lifted a three-week lockdown that had been imposed on various parts of the country.
Schools and borders remain closed and the president has urged all Muslims to pray at home during the month of Ramadan.
The country has so far confirmed 1,550 coronavirus cases and 11 deaths. Some 155 patients have recovered from Covid-19.
President Akufo-Addo said that the country will build over 80 new hospitals nationwide. Additionally, three infectious disease centres will be built in the coastal, central and northern regions of the country.
Ghana’s ministry of health has also issued a directive for Ghanaians to wear masks in public places to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
The country has enhanced its testing capacity and has received additional test kits from the US government.
