Guinea-Bissau reports 56 new cases of COVID-19

Source: Xinhua| 2020-05-17 00:25:29|Editor: huaxia

BISSAU, May 16 (Xinhua) -- Guinea-Bissau's health authorities on Saturday reported 56 new confirmed cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number to 969 cases in the country.

Among 94 tests carried out in the past 24 hours, 56 cases came back positive, said Tumane Balde, spokesperson of the Interministerial Commission for the Prevention and Control of COVID-19.

On Friday, Guinea-Bissau was not able to hold its daily COVID-19 briefing, since no tests had been done due to "difficulty of collecting samples."

The government decided on Monday to extend the state of emergency throughout the national territory until May 26.

The country has been isolating itself since March 17 when the government ordered the closure of all borders and suspension of all international flights. Several other drastic measures have been taken as well, including the closing of restaurants, bars, places of worship and schools, as well as the ban on gatherings and circulation of people.

So far, Guinea-Bissau has reported 969 cases of COVID-19, including four deaths and 26 recovery cases, since March 25. Enditem

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