This archive report was first published on 13 May 2020.
On May 13, 2020, Burundi took a drastic measure by expelling a senior World Health Organisation (WHO) representative and three senior health experts.
Dr. Walter Kazadi Mulombo, the WHO boss in Bujumbura, and his colleagues, Prof. Daniel Tarzy, Dr. Ruhna Mirindi Bisimwa, and Dr. Jean-Pierre Mulunda Nkata, were declared persona non grata and given up to May 15 to leave the country.
The move comes as Burundi reported 15 cases of COVID-19, with one death, and closed its main airport to international flights.
However, the country has attracted public criticism for going ahead with planned elections due May 20 by allowing public rallies and gatherings, despite the COVID-19 outbreak.
According to officials in Bujumbura, election observers will not be permitted into the country unless they agree to take 14 days of quarantine, which would mean they would arrive after the ballots are cast.
