A total of 24 cross-border cargo truck drivers on Saturday, May 16, 2020 tested positive for COVID-19 in Uganda, taking the total number of infections to 227 in the country, the Health Ministry said.
Out of 2,044 samples collected from cross-border truck drivers, the 24 new cases comprise 14 Kenyans, six Tanzanians and four Ugandans, the ministry said in a statement on Sunday.
“All 554 community samples have tested negative for COVID-19,’’ it added.
Uganda, earlier on Saturday, issued new stringent measures on cross-border cargo truck drivers, saying that only those, who test negative for COVID-19, will be allowed to enter the country.
“As earlier communicated, action to address rising cases among truck drivers has been taken,’’ Health Minister, Ruth Aceng, tweeted.
Out of the 227 COVID-19 cases, at least 63 have recovered and no one has died from the disease, according to the ministry.
Meanwhile, Indonesia reported 59 new deaths of the COVID-19 on Sunday, raising the total fatalities in the country to 1,148, said Achmad Yurianto, a Health Ministry official.
Yurianto also said there were 489 new confirmed cases within the past 24 hours, taking the total to 17,520.
He said 218 more people had been discharged from hospitals, making the total number of recovered patients stand at 4,129.
The number of patients suspected of carrying the virus symptoms has increased to 35,800.
