'Africa still has time to prepare as pandemic declared'

Very few outbreaks in history have been described as pandemics. The last was swine flu over a decade ago. But as of Wednesday, the coronavirus is officially a pandemic as confirmed by the World Health Organization (WHO).

It has spread to 114 countries across the world from China in just over three months, infected more than 118,000 people and killed more than 4,200.

Africa is one of the last places to be touched. So far, 12 African countries have reported outbreaks with 112 cases in total and two deaths.

The outbreak remains small-scale in most countries, which means they have time to prepare for an infection that will most likely spread to new places in the coming weeks.

Ivory Coast is the latest African country to report a case – a 45-year-old Ivorian who travelled from Italy.

The WHO is urging countries to take urgent and aggressive action to control the outbreak.

Covid-19 has no cure or vaccine, but it can be prevented by practising basic hygiene.

Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth because you may have come into contact with contaminated surfaces. Wash your hands regularly with soap and water, and cover your nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing using tissue paper or a folded elbow to prevent droplets jumping to others.