President Uhuru Kenyatta on Wednesday said that Kenya will begin targeted mass testing in high-risk Covid-19 areas from this weekend noting that the government has scaled up testing capacities and will target specific areas.
During which the government will also focus on certain areas and personnel such as the Kenya Ports Authority employees and the health care workers.
With the scaled up capacity the government targets to test up to 2,000 people per day, this is after the number of tests per day reduced drastically on Tuesday to 545 from 1,339 samples collected on Sunday.
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Health CAS Mercy Mwangangi blamed the lower number on lack of sample kits used in delivering Covid-19 results adding that kits such as nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal swabs are not in adequate supply but there are several laboratories for testing.
President Kenyatta asked Kenyans to adhere to the regulations set by the government to reduce further spread of the virus.
Health facilities including Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret has now been approved to carry out the tests after it received reagents and other requirements from the Kenya Medical Supplies Authority. MTRH will be abled to carry out nearly 960 tests every eight hours.
The announcement come amid reports that the state is mulling total lockdowns of Nairobi and Mombasa cities next week to deal with steady numbers of new COVID-19 infections.
Experts warn that this stage is more challenging to contain by health workers because of the geographical spread which makes control and tracing difficult.
PS Kibicho also pointed that restriction on movements in Nairobi, Mombasa, Kilifi and Kwale doseem not to be bearing fruits as many people cook up tricks to beat the system.
“If we continue being reckless, as has been the case in the last two weeks, the government will have no option but ban all movements in the affected areas,” Kibicho said.
https://www.voanews.com/covid-19-pandemic/kenya-start-mass-testing-covid-19-new-equipment-china
Kibicho has however come under fierce critism by the embattled Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko who accused the Interior PS of dragging politics into the war against COVID-19.
Sonko claims that his Sonko Rescue Team staffers fumigating various sections of Nairobi are being arrested and harassed by police under directives from Kibicho.
Nairobi is leading in number of positive coronavirus cases but the efforts by the governor including installation of spraying booths have been vandalised. Sonko says the national government has a hand in his tribulations as he warns that ‘cheap politics’ will not help flattening the COVID-19 curve.
The country is facing challenges in making social distance effective and compulsory wearing of masks in public places.
But after receiving masks, tubes, and other medical equipment from China early in the week the country now has the capacity to conduct wider testing for the coronavirus.
Health CS Mutahi Kagwe stated that Kenya also bought 4,000 shoe covers, which will be used by front line health workers, and 76,000 N95 masks and face visors but a consignment of ventilators is still on its way from China.
