Harare, (New Ziana) – Zimbabwe remains at nine confirmed cases of Covid-19 including one death after 13 new samples of people exhibiting symptoms were tested on Friday and all came out negative, the Ministry of Health and Child Care said on Saturday.

The update came as health authorities dismissed social media reports that six new cases had been confirmed at a “testing centre” in the affluent suburb of Borrowdale, in the capital Harare.

“The Ministry would like to report that today (Friday) the National Microbiology Reference Laboratory tested 13 samples. All of them tested negative for Covid-19,” the health ministry said.

“Therefore to date, Zimbabwe has nine confirmed cases, including one death.”

To date, a total of 329 tests have been conducted.

The ministry said all Covid-19 tests were being conducted at the National Microbiology Reference Laboratory based at the Sally Mugabe Hospital, formerly known as Harare Central Hospital.

“There are no confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Borrowdale,” the ministry said.

The country remains on high alert, with authorities currently enforcing a 21-day national lockdown aimed at minimising the spread of the virus.

The government has declared the pandemic, which has killed over 60 000 people globally, a national disaster and has launched an appeal for at least US$220 million to augment its efforts to tackle the disease.

A special fund to mobilise resources for tackling the coronavirus, open to donations from anyone, has also been set up.
New Ziana