Lesotho, last standing African country, reports first COVID-19 case

Lesotho was the last remaining country in Africa with no case of COVID-19.

Lesotho has confirmed its first case of COVID-19, becoming the last country in Africa to be affected by the global pandemic.

The country's health ministry said on Wednesday it had conducted 81 tests on travelers from South Africa and Saudi Arabia, of which one was positive. It was still awaiting results from 301 other tests.

Lesotho, a country engulfed by South Africa, has a population of about 2.1 million people. It was the last remaining country in Africa with no case of COVID-19.

According to data released earlier by the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, the continent had reported 69,578 infections and 2,403 deaths.

In Lesotho, the disease arrives at a time when the country is in a political mood, with the expected stepping down of Prime Minister Thomas Thabane due next week.

Thabane's government fell apart in Parliament after his coalition partners withdrew their support.

The Prime Minister has been embroiled in a court dispute alongside his wife in a case where they are accused by police of murdering his former wife nearly three years ago.

Source(s): Reuters