New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has announced that coronavirus has been “currently” eliminated in the country. There were just five new Covid-19 cases reported on Monday with no widespread community transition. Ardern said the country has so far managed to avoid the worst scenarios for an outbreak and would continue to hunt down the last few cases. Easing of lockdown As such, from midnight on Monday, certain businesses such as construction will be allowed to reopen, but social distancing rules will still apply. “We are opening up the economy, but we’re not opening up people’s social lives,” Ms Ardern said at the daily government briefing. Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield said the low number of new cases in recent days “does give us confidence that we have achieved our goal of elimination”. He warned that “elimination” did not mean there would be no new cases, “but it does mean we know where our cases are coming from”. Ms Ardern said there was “no...

Nigeria - Earlier today, I took 2 hours out of isolation to attend the daily virtual meeting of State Standing Committee on Covid-19, chaired by Deputy Governor @DrHadiza Balarabe. Since there is some fake news circulating that I am in an ICU in a Lagos Hospital, a nice ICU picture will help debunk the evil news! For the avoidance of any doubt, I have been isolated for the past 24 days in a wing of the Government House, Kaduna undergoing treatment for coronavirus from doctors of the State Ministry of Health. As the pictures show, I have not shaved since I went into isolation so that I will have a new Covid-19 look to remember when this pandemic passes, as it surely will by the Grace of God. I appreciate these dedicated public servants as well as all those that called or sent messages expressing concern and sympathy, but I am fine and getting better every passing day. Alhamdulillah. - Nasir @elrufai - April 20, 2020

Nigeria The Lagos chapter of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) has announced the death of Chugbo Emeka, a medical doctor. The announcement was made via a post on the association’s Twitter handle. The doctor was said to have died on Wednesday, after being exposed to a COVID-19 patient. He reportedly died at the isolation ward of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH). NMA LAGOS regrets to announce the death of Dr. Chugbo Emeka at the LUTH isolation ward. He died on 15/04/2020.  He was Private Medical Practitioner who was exposed to a confirmed case of COVID-19. We condole with his family and d medical community for this painful loss announced by NMA Lagos Earlier on Wednesday, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, governor of Lagos state, announced the discharge of 16 COVID-19 patients, bringing the state’s total number of discharged patients to 85. The 16 patients included 14 from the Infectious Disease Hospital, Yaba, and two from the Onikan isolation centre. They were dischar...

France : Raoul published a video in which he affirms that "for us (in Marseille), the epidemic is disappearing." A "premature" prognosis, answers the Regional Health Agency.       Image: Professor Raoult  (credit: GERARD JULIEN ) Professor Didier Raoult is a specialist in infectious diseases at the IHU (Institut hospitalo-universitaire Méditerranée Infection) in Marseille. He is being talked about for tests of a molecule, hydroxychloroquine, to treat the new coronavirus Covid-19. This Tuesday, April 14, supporting figures, Professor Raoult affirms: "For us, the epidemic is gradually disappearing." "At the maximum, at the peak, we had up to 368 cases per day, and there, currently, we are rather at 60-80 per day, explains the doctor. There is a very significant decrease in the number of cases detected. So it is possible that the epidemic will disappear in the spring, and that within a few weeks there will be no more cases for reasons which are...