Photograph — Bloomberg

On Tuesday the 31st of March, Botswana’s president Mokgweetsi Masisi declared an indefinite state of emergency effective after recording its first confirmed cases of coronavirus (COVID-19). This would take effect at 12:01 am Thursday.

“The return of some of our citizens and residents from high risk countries has also escalated the threat of the virus in our country.  Therefore, after consultations with the relevant stakeholders, it has become clear to me that it is necessary to declare a state of public emergency for the purpose of taking appropriate and stringent measures to address the risks posed by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Masisi.

During the state of emergency, people would not be allowed outside of their homes except for essential services, such as food and medicine. Authorities have been ordered to enforce social distancing for at least 28 days, while Botswana’s National Assembly would meet to decide the duration of the state of emergency.

On Monday night, the country’s health minister announced that three people who just returned to the country tested positive to the virus, which led to the president springing into action and declaring a state of emergency.

Since the first suspected case in January, Botswana has been taking measures to prevent the spread of the virus. The country closed its borders after neighbor South Africa recorded a jump in coronavirus cases and Zimbabwe recorded its first death from the virus.

However, the question on the minds of the people is if the government is as prepared as it claims to be in dealing with the virus. Although some of its borders have been closed and flights cancelled, the country needs to fall in line with other infected countries by closing all its borders while monitoring everyone that goes in/out.

It doesn’t end by shutting doors but also having an equipped health care facility that will help isolate the infected patients. Unfortunately, the country’s health care system is not equipped to handle COVID-19.

The Southern Health Institute (SHI) annual report shows that Botswana is not investing towards improving infectious disease control and prevention. There are no functioning laboratories and no nationwide Infectious Disease Reporting System. The report also says that the country lacks an “extensive reporting system” and there are no “rigid laws on infectious diseases control and public health emergencies.”

Botswana ranked 139 out of 195 countries in the Global Health Security Index, putting it on a list of countries that an international initiative it has signed onto considers “least prepared” to deal with global public health emergencies. In terms of response, Botswana has a score of 23.9 percent and an overall ranking of 160th. In terms of prevention, the country scores 22.0 percent and is ranked 152nd; scores 28.2 percent for detection and is ranked 133rd.

The government needs to do more in preserving the country, both physically and economically against COVID-19 starting with the health sector.

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