Africa-Press – Lesotho. Despite Lesotho having been stuck with only 4 confirmed covid-19 cases – only 2 active – since the first case that was imported in April, it seems the worst is still on the horizon for
the mountain kingdom if the recent World Health Organization (WHO) approximations are to go by. Lesotho had once held a favorable record as the only African country and one of the fewest in the
world to be on zero confirmed cases of this pandemic between February and April. Also, since the first case was recorded, the country seems to be on the
lowest of infection rates compared to other states that had reported their first cases. Of the 4 reported cases, two have recovered and two are still active.
However, this shouldn’t spell any sign of relief as it has been predicted by WHO that over 200 000 Basotho are likely to get the virus. WHO Lesotho Representative Dr.
Richard Banda told the communications cluster under National Emergency Command Centre (NECC) yesterday that these projections are not meant to scare the nation but for planning purposes.
He stated that predictions are WHO models aimed at preparing its members for worst scenario cases. “This does not necessarily mean such will happen,” he emphasized. However, he is adamant
that the outbreak is not over yet, wherein more and more people have the likelihood of having the virus, hence the need for all to take precaution against the pandemic which has seen many suffering.
Meanwhile, United Nations Information Centre and Resident Coordinator Offices has also shown Covid-19 messages are being disseminated in Lesotho but the challenge is many people
particularly in rural areas still believe that COVID-19 does not exist and that even the existing cases were made up by government to get international funding.
Currently, Lesotho has registered four Covid-19 cases on WHO charts, with two having recovered whereas the neighboring Republic of South Africa (RSA) has a total of 70 038 cases, 38
531 are recoveries, with a total of 1480 fatalities.
