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Key Facts and Actions
• Approximately 47% of confirmed COVID-19 cases are asymptomatic and 43% have light symptoms.
• Nampula province in northern Mozambique declared as thest geographical location with community transmission of COVID-19.
• Over 2,500,000 children reached with key COVID and child rights related messages on 1st June celebrations.
• Developed hygiene protocols for school reopening and standard kit contents for schools.
• Ongoing deliveries of WASH IPC materials to provinces for isolation wards and health facilities.
• UNICEF is supporting 10 multimedia mobile units in 6 provinces to continue promoting preventive behaviors of COVID-19.
Situation Overview
Since the confirmation of the first case of COVID-19 in Mozambique (22 March 2020), the country has 472 confirmed cases as of 11 June 2020. This represents an increase in cases of about 51% since the last report and according to Ministry of Health (MoH). Since the onset of the outbreak in March 2020, the country recorded the highest number of tests performed in the month of May 2020. It is important to note that 47% of cases (07 June) are asymptomatic and 43% presents light symptoms. As of 10 June, MoH reported that three out of 331 current active cases are hospitalized with the remaining in home isolation.
On 6 June 2020, the Minister of Health declared Nampula province as the 1st geographical location with community transmission of COVID-19 due to rapid spread of the disease and the epidemiological profile of the cases. The other geographical location reporting significant rise in cases is Maputo city and province with total of 128 cases now confirmed. The MoH will establish testing capacity of COVID-19 in Nampula province which is expected to commence on 25 June. The MoH is particularly concerned with Nampula province due to quick rise of confirmed cases, high positivity rates in people tested (8 times higher the national average) and high transmission intensity that can result in severe cases and deaths.
The current strategy of the MoH to control the outbreak is based on active finding of suspected cases, and contact testing, quarantine and isolation in order to break the transmission chain of COVID-19. Epidemiological surveillance will be reinforced by establishing additional surveillance posts.
As informed in the last report (28 May), the Government of Mozambique extended the state of Emergency till 29 June and during this extension the Government stressed the full adherence of preventive measures including the mandatory use of social masks in public spaces and in public transport, frequent hand washing with soup, maintain physical distance of at least 1.5meter and restricted movement of people. The government continues to maintain school closures, which have impacted 8.5 million students at all levels, with 14,667 pre-primary, primary and secondary schools currently closed.
The MoH also established treatment and isolation centers and Rapid Response Teams in all provinces. The MoH developed a Preparedness and Response Plan with actions in the following areas: coordination, disease surveillance and point of entry, laboratory, case management, supplies and logistic, human resources, infection prevention and control (IPC) and communication and social mobilization. Other Ministries also developed sectoral plans to respond to the secondary impacts of the pandemic.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
