State-owned television channel Algerie 2 confirmed the first case in Algeria of the novel coronavirus “Covid-19.”
The outbreak of the coronavirus in Algeria has confirmed after an Italian man with the virus arrived in Algeria on February 17.
“There were two Italian men but only one had symptoms of the virus,” Algerian Health Minister Abderrahmane Benbouzid said in an aired news report.
The minister said that the man is in quarantine and receiving medical help.
Algeria is the second African country to record a confirmed case of Covid-19 after Egypt.
A recent study from medical journal the Lancet listed Algeria among the African countries at highest “importation risk” from China.
Morocco, according to the study, is among the countries at “moderation importation risk.”
Morocco has been putting in place strict health monitoring measures at borders in airports and ports to detect any possible cases. However, not all flights from affected countries are being screened for high temperatures.
The epidemic has killed more than 2,800 people in China, where the virus appeared first in December 2019. Other countries with numerous cases of the coronavirus include Italy, Iran, and South Korea.
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