This archive report was first published on 17 May 2020.
South Sudan has been grappling with the Covid-19 pandemic since April 5, when a 29-year-old woman who had travelled from Ethiopia on February 28 tested positive.
As of May 17, 2020, the country's Health ministry reported 54 new Covid-19 cases, bringing the total number of confirmed infections to 290.
According to Dr Loi Thuoi, the Health ministry spokesman, some of the new cases were contacts of people who had already tested positive for the coronavirus disease, while others were people who sought help after experiencing symptoms or were tested as they wanted to travel outside the country.
The ministry is tracing contacts of all those who tested positive, Dr Thuoi added, urging the public to cooperate with health authorities and adhere to measures put in place to prevent the spread of the virus.
On the same day, President Salva Kiir reconstituted a new High-Level Taskforce on coronavirus pandemic, following complaints from citizens and activists that the previous committee was full of politicians and made non-scientific decisions.
The new taskforce is led by Vice President Hussein Abdelbagi and has a number of undersecretaries, the health minister, and a member of the doctors' union.
Edmund Yakani, executive director of Community Empowerment for Progress Organization, welcomed the new taskforce, saying its members have the technical skills required to offer better guidance.
He also urged the team to review the decision to ease restrictions in the country, specifically the issue of bars, which he said is difficult to enforce social distancing in.
