Ethiopia is among 13 African countries the World Health Organization (WHO) considers as top priority for COVID-19 readiness due to direct links or a high volume of travel to China. . The World Health Organization is supporting countries across Africa to step up measures necessary to quickly diagnose and control widespread infection should the virus transmission reach the continent.
Ethiopia is strengthening surveillance, diagnostics and medical care and public health information and education in readiness for a potential coronavirus outbreak. As COVID-19 is a new pathogen, Ethiopia, like many other countries, lacked the capacity to diagnose it. Adamu Tayachew heads an eight-member technician team at the National Influenza and Arbovirus Laboratory. “We started collecting samples on 25 January 2020. We shipped 11 samples in three phases to South Africa for analysis. The remaining we tested here. The shipment involved a lot of people and complex coordination. It called for working with several bodies to ship the samples and then following up on the results.” WHO has sent reagents to more than 20 countries in Africa, including Ethiopia, to boost diagnostic capacity. Ethiopia’s National Influenza and Arbovirus started testing for the virus on 7 February. “The test is not complicated. We now have the reagents and the necessary documentation. Once the samples are submitted we provide results within the same day. Currently we receive up to four samples a day for testing, but we anticipate that this will increase,” says Mr Adamu.