Kenya suspends all public gatherings

The Kenyan government has taken the step to suspend all public gathering in the wake of the news that the country has its first positive case of the coronavirus.

The Health Minister, Mutahi Kagwe, said church services would continue to go ahead, but churches must provide hand sanitisers for all members of the congregation.

Schools will also remain open for the time being, but all inter-school activities will be banned.

Kagwe urged calm, saying these measures were being put in place to prevent further spread of the virus, calling for “serious citizen responsibility”.

He added that rapid-response teams will be dispatched to any suspected new cases of the coronavirus, and asked all transport operators to regularly clean their vehicles.

All prison visits have also been suspended for the next 30 days.

The announcement comes just 24 hours after the government declared all non-essential travel by government workers and public servants would be prohibited.

Photo: AFP via Getty Images