This archive report was first published on 8 August 2020.
Kenya has been grappling with the COVID-19 pandemic since March, with nearly 350,000 samples tested to date.
On August 8, 2020, Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe announced 699 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total caseload to 25,837. Fatalities from the virus also rose to 418 after 5 more patients succumbed.
According to Kagwe, 11,899 people had recovered after 781 more patients were cleared of the virus. Of those, 656 were on the home-based care programme, while 125 were discharged from various hospitals countrywide.
Speaking on a tour of Kakamega County, Kagwe praised Kenyans for their success with the home-based care programme, saying, 'We are very proud of Kenyans because of the success that we have experienced with the home-based care programme and to date we have not registered any fatality under the programme.'
However, Kagwe also emphasized the importance of following health protocols, citing a case where a young man in an unnamed county refused to self-isolate and follow health protocols, consequently infecting both his parents.
'It is very unfortunate because we keep warning against such kind of behaviour,' Kagwe said.
