The West African country of Togo has registered its first case of coronavirus, its government said on Friday.

Since the appearance of the coronavirus epidemic, Togo has prepared itself to deal with it, notably by taking active surveillance measures at its borders. For example, a woman who was seen in consultation presented with signs of coronavirus flu, such as fever, sore throat and headache.

The patient is a 42-year old female resident of the capital Lome who had visited Benin, Germany, France and Turkey in late February and early March. She is being treated in isolation and her condition is stable .

“The samples, taken and analyzed at the national reference laboratory on March 5, 2020, revealed a positive result for the coronavirus. This index case is that of a 42-year-old patient living in Lomé with her family.

However, from February 22 to March 2, 2020, she stayed successively in Benin, in Germany, in France, in Turkey, then returned to Togo via Benin by the land border of Sanvi Condji on March 2, 2020 “,

“The patient is currently placed in isolation at the infectious disease treatment center for adequate treatment. To date, his state of health does not raise any major concerns. In addition, all the people who have been in contact with the patient have been identified and quarantined in accordance with the International Health Regulations” .

“A meeting of the crisis committee chaired by the Head of State was held this Friday, March 6, 2020. All measures are taken to prevent the spread of the virus.

Consequently, the government invites the population not to give in to panic, and to strictly comply with the recommended prevention measures.

A notification has been sent to the World Health Organization (WHO) .