Cameroonian student contracts coronavirus in China

A Cameroonian student in China has become the first African known to be infected with the deadly coronavirus. 

Yangtze University said in a statement the 21-year-old had contracted the virus while visiting Wuhan city, the source of the outbreak. He is now receiving treatment in hospital in Jingzhou city.

The university added that the student’s body temperature had been normal for two consecutive days and that “he has good spirit and a healthy appetite”.

The Cameroonian national returned to Jingzhou, where he lived, from Wuhan on 19th January, before a quarantine was imposed on the city. 

The case has renewed concerns about the safety of some 300 Cameroonians stuck in Wuhan, with little access to water, food and surgical masks. 

African students in China have been making desperate appeals to their governments to evacuate them or at least provide more support while they are trapped in Wuhan. Last week, Cameroonians in the city wrote a letter to President Biya, saying their embassy in Beijing had been unhelpful and that they were in need of basic supplies.

The coronavirus is estimated to have infected over 20,000 people in China and killed 425. The disease was first recorded on New Year’s Eve.

Photo: Getty Images