Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta announced on Saturday that the country’s borders with Tanzania and Somalia will be closed to curtail the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The East African nation will “stop the movement of people and vehicles — but not goods — from its southern and northern neighbors from midnight,” the president said in a televised address.

“Among the positive cases that have been registered in the country this week, a total of 43 cases have recently crossed the border from neighboring Somalia and Tanzania. That represents almost a quarter of the 166 cases recorded during that period,” Kenyatta said.

The President also said the national 7 pm-5 am curfew would be extended until June 6.

He added that the ban on entering or exiting the cities of Nairobi, Mombasa, Kilifi, Kwale, and Mandera still remains in place.

Border tests
Kenyatta emphasized that truck drivers would be tested before entering Kenya, saying that border tests had identified 78 infected drivers.

A brutal and unforgiving enemy is at our wall. He is trying to gain entrance using every door and every window,” he said, referring to the deadly coronavirus disease ravaging the world.

Kenya has so far reported 830 positive coronavirus cases and 50 deaths.