The Wuhan Coronavirus may have hit Africa as Ivory Coast investigates an index case.
A 34-year old student has arrived from China and is being tested for the virus after being taken to a safe location in the country.
The disease has killed 80 people in Wuhan, China as the world braces up for what looks like another pandemic.
Ivorian authorities have said it may be a case of pneumonia after she developed respiratory problems including sneezing and bad breathing on arrival.
The 34-year-old student traveled from Beijing to the Félix-Houphouët-Boigny International Airport in Abidjan on Saturday and was coughing, sneezing and experienced difficulty breathing, Ivory Coast’s Ministry of Health and Public Hygiene said in statement.
CNN reports that authorities are yet to name the lady currently investigated with the final diagnosis being expected in due course.
Michel Yao, WHO Africa emergency response program manager, said the agency has advised health ministers in the region to activate standard flu screening at airports for passengers coming from mainland China.
Over 2700 cases of the disease have been confirmed, prompting Nigerian airports to increase screening and surveillance activities especially with travelers from China and most especially those coming from Wuhan.
Airlines across the continent have been advised to teach their operators ways through which they can manage people with suspected cases of the disease on board.
The Coronavirus is a zoonotic disease, that is, it can be transferred from animals to man and it is in the group of Coronaviruses like the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome MERS).
Recall they the first case of SARS also occurred in China in 2002.
