Rwanda Precautionary measures against the Corona Virus

Rwanda Precautionary measures against the Corona Virus: Rwanda, one of Africa’s fastest growing tourism hubs has in the recent days had to join other African countries in issuing travel restrictions to people entering and leaving the country, as its beefs ups its efforts in guarding the nation from the wide spreading coronavirus – COVID 19.

The travel restrictions are mainly on the people entering the country from the countries that have been most affected by the Coronavirus, their neighbouring counterparts or those people passing through these affected countries.

Rwanda receives about 1.3 million coming into the country for different reasons with biggest number of being tourists that come to explore the country’s diverse tourism adventures, creatures and sites.

Rwanda’s tourism sector is mainly known for its primate trekking safaris that include mountain gorilla trekking, chimpanzee trekking, golden monkey trekking and other primate trekking with the main one being mountain gorilla trekking.

Mountain gorilla trekking is done 2 to 3 hours north of the country’s capital Kigali in Volcanoes National Park all year round at a mountain gorilla trekking permit fee of 1500 USD per person per a trek. This is the most sought after tourist activity in the country so the trekking permits are normally booked 3 months in advance but the experience is life changing.

Other tourism activities in country include wildlife game drives, canopy walks, cycling, hiking escapades, nature walks, community walks, cultural encounters, Plantation visits and not forgetting the genocide memorial tours among other things.

During this season of the coronavirus outbreak the country has introduced travel restrictions on people entering the country from the countries most affected by the virus, which restrictions include:-

Denied admission into the country if the traveller entering the country has signs of the coronavirus
Mandatory screening at every point of entry
14 days self-isolation period for the traveller before they interact with others in the country.
Above all travellers have been advised to postpone their travels to a later time in the year to avoid these inconveniences and to stay safe.

Furthermore the country has indefinitely suspended flights from the affected countries that include: – China, Italy, Iran, South Korea, Spain, France, Germany, US, Switzerland, Norway.

Other measures the country has implemented include but not limited to:-

Introducing Isolation sites at all points of entry, that if an individual is screened and they show some signs of the coronavirus, they are isolated immediately, to reduce chances of spread of the virus.
The Isolation centres are also the first treatment centres for anyone presenting with signs of the disease before further tests are done and more treatment is given.
In the country’s capital the Military hospital in Kanombe, has been officially declared the coronavirus screening centre with a fully equipped laboratory that is intended to run the coronavirus tests and offer results and offer results within 3 hours.
On top of the Isolation sites at the points of entry, a bigger isolation site that can have between 200 – 300 people has been established in an area that is within a few kilometres of the country’s capital.
Public gatherings have been banned for this season until the outbreak is contained. These include entertainment gatherings, sports events, and conferences among other things.
Mandatory hand washing has been enforced in most public places like bus parks, schools, restaurants, shops, banks and many others. These places have been provided with portable wash sinks that people can easily and readily use.
A toll free line 2028 has also been introduced for anyone to contact the authorities in case they witness the coronavirus signs in themselves or in those around them.
They can use a toll free line of 2028

Rwanda as a nation has not had any case of the COVID19 but one case has so far been confirmed in the East African region in Kenya and worldwide over 5000 people have died from the disease and 145,902 people are still infected with the virus, most of them receiving treatment.

Coronavirus signs and symptoms include flu, running nose and shortness of breath, in some cases people may have a cough and a fever well as others may show no signs. The virus is spread from one infected person to another through direct contact with an infected person or object, through handshakes and droplets from coughing and sneezing.