March 20, 2020 (KHARTOUM) - Sudanese arriving from abroad will be allowed to undergo a mandatory one-month self-quarantine at home, announced Akram Eltom, Sudanese health minister, on Thursday.

Sudanese government on Monday declared a public health emergency to stop Coronavirus spread in the country and closed all airports, ports and land crossings.

However, it decided to open airports for 48 hours on Thursday and Friday to allow the return of Sudanese outside the country.

The coronavirus crisis management committee Thursday confirmed that there are no new positive cases of the infectious disease in Sudan.

The Coronavirus committee held a meeting to discuss the health situation in the country chaired by Siddiq Tawer a member of the Sovereign Council.

Speaking after the meeting Eltom announced that the committee decided to not confine systematically those who return from countries with a high risk of Coronavirus.

People who have no symptoms of the disease or have not had contact with infected persons can go to their homes and the health authorities will follow up their situation.

In return, they must undergo self-quarantine in their homes and stay for a month where they should not hang out with others or eat with them and not go to work or the market.

Also, they should notify the health authorities if they are showing symptoms or their family members are showing symptoms of the virus, he added.

Hundreds of Sudanese returned from Egypt as the authorities there say they registered 256 cases of the respiratory disease including seven deaths.

The Federal Ministry of Health on 18 March, said there are no new confirmed cases of Coronavirus in Sudan after the case of that Sudanese who returned from the UAE.

"30 suspected cases are currently in isolation. All suspected cases were tested, of which 21 tested negative and the rest are pending results. In addition, 44 people are under quarantine due to contact tracing," said the UN OCHA in a report about the situation in Sudan.

The minister said any suspected case among the Sudanese who have returned to the country will be confined.

Further, announced that the Coronavirus committee decided to ban social gathering such as wedding parties, political meetings, closure of restaurants. He mentioned that the religious affairs minister announced several measures related to the mosques and churches to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

For his part, the Committee chairman Tawer confirmed that there are no new cases of Coronavirus had been detected in the country "and the situation was under control".

(ST)