By Innocent Mujeri

China is set to upgrade isolation centres and other health facilities in the country to intensify preventative measures against Corona Virus (NCoV), the Harare Posts can report.

This was revealed yesterday by the Deputy Chinese Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Minister Counsellor Zhao Baogang at a press briefing held in Harare yesterday.

“China will upgrade isolation facilities such as Wilkins Hospital to improve isolation services. This is to ensure that the virus is curbed before it spread to Zimbabwean people,” said Baogang.

As a way of ensuring that the virus will not come into Zimbabwe, the Chinese Embassy in Zimbabwe has issued a statement discouraging their nationals from coming to Zimbabwe.

It was also revealed that for those who arrive from China, the self-quarantine period has been extended from 14 days to 21 days. The Deputy Chinese Ambassador said this is to discourage the Chinese from coming into Zimbabwe.

The Minister of Health and Child Care Obadiah Moyo also briefed the media that Government is about to acquire rapid results test kits that will detect symptoms of NCoV within 15 minutes.

“Government is set to acquire Rapid Test Kits that will detect the symptoms of the virus within 15 minutes. Although chances of the virus to come to Zimbabwe are slim due to a number of preventative measure we have put in place, it is also wise to be ready and prepared,” said Minister Moyo.

Minister Moyo also discouraged Zimbabweans from making unnecessary visits to China or other affected countries to safeguard themselves from the virus.

The first symptoms of the virus were detected in the provinces of Wuhan and Hubei in China and to date there are 28 000 thousand confirmed cases of the virus. 600 people have already succumbed to the virus and 1 200 have been cured of the same.