Having reported its highest single-day spike in daily new COVID-19 cases, Kenya has once again registered a record increase in its daily new infections.
The Chief Administrative Secretary in the Ministry of Health, Rashid Aman, announced on Thursday that there were 213 new cases in the East African country, taking its total tally to 4,257.
Kenya’s COVID-19 figures have seen a recent spike as the country embarked on a mass testing drive.
Aman attributed the increasing numbers to laxity on the part of Kenyans in adhering to the health guidelines issued to curb the spread of the disease.
“The increasing numbers mean that the possibility of one getting infected is real because the virus is well entrenched in our community and is lurking in our midst. Yet it is possible to curtail the spread of the virus if all of us strictly adhere to the containment measures,” he said.
Nairobi remains the East African country’s epicenter with the coastal city of Mombasa also contributing a big chunk of the cases.
“We have said repeatedly that there is so much that the government can do in protecting Kenyans and we will continue to do all that the government to protect Kenyans. But there is also a responsibility on the part of each and every one of us to protect ourselves and protect other Kenyans,” Aman said.
He urged the country’s citizens to reflect on their response to the virus to identify which areas should be changed in a bid to stop the disease from spreading further.
In is briefing, Aman also announced that the country’s COVID-19 related deaths in the last 24 hours had hit 10, taking the total tally to 117.
The latest figures come a day after President Uhuru Kenyatta joined other African leaders and the Chinese President Xi Jinping in a virtual Extraordinary China-Africa Summit on solidarity against COVID-19.
President Kenyatta highlighted the need to bolster cooperation on public health.
“I am aware strengthening of public health systems is one of the pillars of the Forum on Africa-China Cooperation (FOCAC). As the pandemic has demonstrated, this is a critical agenda, which has not received the attention it deserves,” President Kenyatta said.
