Attachments
Reporting Period: 01 to 15 April 2020
Highlights
• Chad declared its first case of COVID-19 on 19 March 2020. The individual had been travelling in the past weeks through two other African countries already reporting more cases.
• As of 13 April 2020, there are a total of 23 confirmed COVID-19 cases, of which 19 hospitalized in the Farcha Provincial Hospital and 1 hospitalized in the quarantine site of Abéché Provincial Hospital, all being in stable condition, 1 was evacuated to his country of origin, and 2 patients recovered. 52% of all cases (12 cases) are due to local transmission1 .
• 23 confirmed cases have been registered in three provinces: N’Djamena (21 cases), Chari-Baguirmi (1 case) and Ouaddai (1 case)2 .
• 22 out of 23 confirmed cases have been male: 15-24 years: 1 case; 25-34 years: 4 cases; 35-44 years: 7 cases; 45-59 years: 6 cases; >60 years: 4 cases. 1 confirmed female case is aged between 45-59 years.
• As of 13 April 2020, a total of 339 out of 339 (100%) of contacts have been traced and are followed up3 - A group of 2,717 Chadian students, mostly returning from Cameroon had to be quarantined on return, with 1,316 already released after the mandatory two-week period.
• Under the leadership of the newly set up Health Monitoring and Safety Unit (Cellule de veille et de sécurité sanitaire) coordinated by the Minister Secretary of State at the Presidency, the Government finalized the National Contingency Plan for Preparedness and Response to the Epidemic of Coronavirus COVID-19 (Plan National de contingence pour la préparation et la riposte à l’épidémie de la maladie coronavirus COVID-19) and is seeking the UN and development partners’ support.
• In addition, to prevent the spread of the disease, the Government has taken a series of measures with the major ones focused on: suspension of all international flights, closure of schools, universities, places of worship, and of non-essential businesses, a ban on public transport, closure of the main markets and a curfew in the capital of N’Djamena and 4 provinces of Logone Occidental, Logone Oriental, Mayo-kebbi Ouest and Mayo-kebbi Est.
• In support of the Government National Contingency Plan, the UN has developed a UN joint COVID-19 Operational Support Plan and is positioning its assistance in the critical areas of communication, disease surveillance and testing including at critical border entry points, distribution of health consumables/essential drugs and equipment and capacity building of heath personnel and frontline workers for case management and surveillance, water, sanitation and hygiene, nutrition and child protection.
• Key challenges include: Limitation in consumables, personal protection equipment (PPE) and equipment for critical clinical care to equip Farcha Provincial Hospital and render the unit entirely functional; reinforcement of surveillance, tracing and case management capacity at provincial level; increase in laboratory capacity in N’Djamena and in the provinces; lack of infrastructure and sanitation of quarantine sites; and strengthening assistance provided to Chadian students returning from Cameroon.