COVID-19 death toll rises in Sudan

The Ministry of Health reported yesterday that 319 new COVID-19 cases were registered on Saturday and Sunday. 59 patients died the past two days.

The Directorate General of Emergencies and Epidemic Control of the Ministry of Health initially reported 128 new COVID-19 cases. In a press statement the ministry stated yesterday that 191 cases registered in private laboratories should be added.

The total number of coronavirus cases in Sudan is now 15,047. The majority of the victims live in Khartoum. 1,175 patiens have died. In recent weeks only a few COVID-19 patients died.

The ministry stated that teams are counting new COVID-19 cases and deaths in government and private hospitals, and those privately reported. The press statement emphasised that the federal and state health emergency departments seek to periodically check the quality of the information before the COVID-19 statistics are published on the website of the ministry.

The statement called on the Sudanese to adhere to the COVID-19 guidelines to prevent infection, and to immediately report suspected cases.

Addressing a workshop yesterday, the undersecretary of the Ministry of Health warned that a new lockdown may have to be imposed again. He deplored the way Sudanese people are dealing with the disease. “The people definitely need to be made more aware of the dangers.”

The Medical Laboratories’ Central Committee yesterday expressed its regrets about the overcrowding in front of federal and state government laboratories in Khartoum. It also criticised the lack of possibilities for people who want to travel to acquire a COVID-19 test.

In a statement, the committee criticised the Khartoum state Ministry of Health for assigning just one laboratory for testing “despite the abundance of resources and possibilities”. “This opens the door for travel agencies and others to conduct coronavirus tests, which can easily lead to corruption,” the committee warned.

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