Kenya continues to battle the COVID-19 pandemic with cases steadily rising each day. Government have locked down a handful of counties including the capital Nairobi and imposed a night-time curfew as part of containment efforts.
This rolling page will continue to give updates on major occurrences as relates to the East African country. You can follow Kenya’s March – April 2020 COVID-19 updates on our earlier page.
Kenya as of May 10 was the fourth most impacted country in the East / Horn of Africa region only behind Djibouti, Sudan and Somalia. Government also rolled out mass testing in virus hot spots, borders remain shut and a ban on public gatherings continues.
July 12: 10,294 cases; record 12 deaths in a day
Health Minister Mutahi Kagwe today confirmed 189 new Covid-19 cases out of a total of 1,205 samples in the last 24 hours. Kenya’s caseload now stands at 10,294. The 10,000 mark was reached on Sunday, July 12.
The country also recorded highest number of COVID-19 fatalities in a day as 12 patients succumbed bringing death toll to 197. On the recovery front, 65 patients were discharged bringing the tally to 2,946.
Meanwhile, the Standard Digital news outlet reported that some 15 nurses at a maternity hospital had tested positive for the virus. The cited the chairman of the Kenya Union of nurses as confirming the development at Pumwani Maternity Hospital.
Kenya last Friday mourned the passing of a medic who contracted the virus. The incident involving Doreen Adisa reignited the issue of ill-protected frontline workers.
C-HERP project is designed to assist countries to prevent, detect and respond to the threat posed by COVID-19, and to strengthen the national systems for public health preparedness and responsiveness. #KomeshaCorona https://t.co/gpsHCB2tKq— Ministry of Health (@MOH_Kenya) July 13, 2020
July 2: tourism industry gets big boost
Kenya has taken giant steps to shore its tourism industry from the worsening economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
Tourism Minister Najib Balala announced a raft of measures on Thursday. “Due to the adverse effects of Covid-19 to the tourism and wildlife sector. We have reduced entry fees to all Kenya Wildlife Service game parks and reserves to 50%.
“This will apply for all categories of tourists (local, residents & international), effective July 1, 2020 for one year,” he added. The main interventions are:
Reduced national park entry fees for Kenyan and international visitors.
Lodges inside the parks have also been given a year’s moratorium from paying rent.
Film makers have also been given a 50% discount on filming fees charged in parks.
The minister also urged the lodges to use the rent holiday to improve services. Tourism is a mainstay of the Kenyan economy. The country us a major player in the East African region along with Uganda and Tanzania.
Confirmed cases = 6,673
Active cases = 4,435
Recoveries = 2,089
Number of deaths = 149
John Hopkins Uni stats valid as of July 1, 2020
The Cabinet Secretary Min_TourismKE t
