These 9 countries have managed to stay away from Covid-19— one of them even banned the word ‘coronavirus’

• As of March 31, COVID-19 killed 42,344 and infected 860,170 worldwide.
  
• The deadly virus has spread to 203 countries and has been declared a pandemic by WHO.
  
• While most of the countries continue to battle the pandemic, as many as 9 countries claim to have no confirmed coronavirus cases so far.
  
  

The deadly coronavirus infection which was first reported in Wuhan, China has spread all over the world. As of March 31, it killed 42,344 people and infected 860,170 worldwide. The deadly virus has made its way to 203 countries crumbling their healthcare systems and affecting the health and wealth of its citizens.

India, which has been battling the outbreak for two months now, reported 1,637 confirmed cases including 38 deaths and 133 recovered patients on April 1.

While most of the countries continue to battle the pandemic, these countries claim that they have no confirmed case as yet. Before we proceed, here’s a fact, Antarctica is the only continent in the world with no coronavirus cases.

North Korea
While its neighbours Japan and South Korea are busy fighting thousands of coronavirus cases, North Korea claims to have zero cases. It tested 590 citizens who traveled abroad but officially denied any positive case.

Credits: AP

"Not one novel coronavirus patient has emerged," Song In Bom, an official from North Korea's emergency health committee said. However, several experts have their doubts.

Reports say that about 200 North Korean soldiers have lost their lives to coronavirus and thousands are reportedly quarantined. North Korea is also known to be quietly seeking aid to increase its testing

Tajikistan

Tajikistan, a country of about 9.5 million people, has no confirmed case of coronavirus as of March 31. However, the government there has taken a variety of preventive measures to prevent its entry. The land-locked country blocked entry of people from 35 countries and closed borders with Afghanistan.

South Sudan

South Sudan in North Africa has managed to prevent the entry of coronavirus. It is one the six countries in the continent to report zero coronavirus cases. According to Doctor Angok Gordon Kuol, the country tested 12 people but none of them were infected. One of the major reasons that it has no confirmed case yet is the low air traffic and international travel. The US donated $8 million to the country.

Burundi

Burundi is the second African country to have managed to stay Covid-19 free. It is bracing for a general election scheduled in May. The government announced several measures including suspension of international flights, setting-up hand wash stations. A few doctors however say there have been no cases because authorities conducted no tests.

Sao Tome and Principe

Sao Tome and Principe — a small island with a population of 200,000 — is yet to officially report a coronavirus case. According to Anne Ancia, a WHO representative, this is possible only because they are unable to test.

Yemen

There are no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Yemen, a neighbour of Saudi Arabia. In spite of this, Yemeni authorities suspended schools, closed grounds and stopped prayers at the mosques to prevent it. However, a Yemen national died in India on March 28 after catching the infection.


Turkmenistan

Turkmenistan — that shares a border with southern regions of Iran— has also not reported any confirmed coronavirus case. However, the government reportedly banned the word or any mention of ‘coronavirus’.


Malawi

Malawi is another African country that has not officially announced any confirmed case. Malawi’s health ministry spokesperson Joshua Malango said it might not have registered any case because of its limited testing abilities.


Lesotho


Lesotho — an African country with a population of 2 million people — locked itself down despite having zero cases of coronavirus. Eight people are suspected of being infected and are under quarantine.


See also:
Latest coronavirus updates in India
North Korea is secretly asking for coronavirus aid from other countries while publicly denying that it has any cases