This archive report was first published on 8 May 2020.
As of Thursday, May 7, 2020, Somalia's confirmed Covid-19 cases were rapidly approaching 1,000, with 55 new infections reported overnight.
According to Somalia's Minister of Health, Dr. Fawzia Abukar Nur, the country now has a total of 928 cases.
"This high number of cases is the result of laboratory analysis," Dr. Nur explained during her press briefing.
The majority of the new cases were recorded in Mogadishu, with 41 cases, followed by 13 in Puntland and 1 in Hirshabelle.
These regions are among the five semi-autonomous authorities that make up the federal government of Somalia.
On the same day, 5 people lost their lives to the virus, while 19 others fully recovered from the infection.
Records show that each of the federal regions is battling Covid-19, with the number of cases rising rapidly in just 17 days.
Initially, there were only 26 cases, but the rapid increase in cases suggests that testing is helping to uncover more patients, and possibly indicates that the spread of the virus is more extensive than previously thought.
However, the real scenario is likely to be even worse, as many people are disregarding health guidelines and advice from the government and medical officials.
Despite the government's calls for people to stay at home and pray at home, large crowds are still flocking to mosques, praying closely lined up together.
Additionally, many mosques are still performing Taraweeh prayers, which go against social distancing guidelines, and people are also gathering to break their fasts, a clearly forbidden practice during this season.
Meanwhile, Somali President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo commended the federal government for delivering equipment and material needed to deal with Covid-19 to the member states in the country.
He also thanked friendly countries that offered Somalia much-needed help during this critical moment of universal health crises.
