• Kianda advised the chiefs and the village elders to take safety precautions while sensitising the residents.
• He reminded residents that gatherings like funerals, weddings, church events should not have more than 15 people.
Chiefs, their assistants and village elders should spend 10 hours daily educating the public on the dangers of Covid-19, Nyanza regional coordinator James Kianda, has said.
Kianda told the administrators to visit people in their homes because many are ignorant of the Ministry of Health directives to contain the spread of coronavirus.
“The disease has adversely affected the economy of the country that is why there is a need for concerted efforts from all stakeholders,” Kianda said.
He spoke in Kisii after meeting Governor James Ongwae over the county’s preparedness in combating the disease.
Kianda advised the chiefs and the village elders to take safety precautions while sensitising the residents.
Governor Ongwae assured Kianda that his administration has put all the necessary measures to deal with any outbreak.
Ongwae said that county has set up a 40-bed emergency isolation centre at the Kisii Teaching and Referral Hospital and equipped it.
A 5-bed ward has also been set aside in every subcounty health facility.
Ongwae said that an order to close all open-air markets including Daraja Mbili, Riosiri, Keumbu, Rioma remains in force.
The county chief said enforcement officers are monitoring the markets to ensure compliance with the ban.
Kianda reminded residents that gatherings like funerals, weddings, church events should not have more than 15 people.
“The public is hereby advised to heed directives given by the government to avoid contracting the disease,” Kianda said.
The number of Covid-19 patients in the country reached 25 on Tuesday. Nine new cases were recorded in the last 24 hours from tests carried out on 82 people.
Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe has since called for mandatory testing for all contact cases and travellers.
The intervention, Kagwe said, is aimed at stopping further importation of the virus into the country.
(edited by o. owino)