Kenya's Ministry of Health is preparing new rules for the reception and screening of travellers from abroad (particularly from other African countries) at international airports.
This is in response to the first cases of monkeypox (Mpox) found in the country, which officially number four to date. All the patients diagnosed with Mpox have a recent history of travelling to Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda, the countries most at risk precisely because of being the epicentre (Congo) or neighbouring countries.
Having said this, it is worth mentioning that the patients, although there are not many public health facilities in Kenya specifically for treating such cases, are not in life-threatening danger, while two others, defined as suspects and whose tests were still in progress, are reportedly dead.
As Deputy Health Minister Mary Muthoni announced to the national media, all entry points into the country have been adequately manned, including airports.
Foreign tourists, including those arriving from Europe, will therefore be required to fill out a health information card that will trigger tracking in case of suspected cases of the virus spreading.
In all likelihood, in addition to self-certification, body temperature will also be taken, as was the case in the early days of Covid19.
Some airlines flying to Kenya are also gearing up to hand out forms to be filled out before boarding and to carry out flying screenings of their passengers.
For now, fortunately and given the still minimal extent of the cases and above all their diffusion, there is no talk of an emergency and no online procedures have been activated that would presuppose prior analyses before travelling to Kenya and back (nor to other countries, for that matter) with the issuing of Qr Codes or similar.
KEMRI, a national laboratory for medical research and analysis, has so far stated that it has received 90 samples for analysis. Four have tested positive and two are awaiting confirmation. Statistics shared by the Ministry of Health indicate that around 600,000 people have been screened so far.