Zambia to shut all schools amid COVID-19 fears

Zambia’s government decided to shut down all educational institutions later this week amid coronavirus outbreak fears, local media reported Tuesday.

Health Minister Chitalu Chilufya said the decision, which takes effect Friday, is a measure to prevent the global outbreak that has not been recorded in Zambia, the Lusaka Times website reported.

Chilufya said precautions include training more than 500 health care workers to treat the virus known as COVID-19, restrictions on foreign travel, including rescheduling all avoidable travel, setting two to14-day quarantine for travelers coming from “high-risk” nations if symptomatic, as well as health screenings at all entry points to the country, according to the website.

The deadly virus has hit 27 African nations.

The virus emerged in Wuhan, China last December, and has spread to nearly 150 countries and territories. The World Health Organization declared the outbreak a pandemic.

Out of 189,233 confirmed cases, the death toll now exceeds 7,500, while more than 80,000 patients have recovered, according to Worldometer, a website that compiles new case numbers.