A papaya in Tanzania positive for SARS-CoV-2

On May 3, John Magufuli, Tanzania's President, declared that the Covid-19 test kits used in the country failed to give positive results on samples taken from a goat and a fruit. papaya.

In an event in Chato, northwestern Tanzania on May 4, Mr. Magufuli said that the kits were imported from abroad and did not give further details.

A papaya in Tanzania positive for SARS-CoV-2 Picture 1

After discovering a technical error that caused the test results to be misleading, the President asked the Tanzanian security force to check the quality of the kits. Previously, a number of non-human samples were randomly taken, including papaya, goat, and sheep and given them names like real people. These samples are then sent to the lab for testing. Technicians are not aware of their origin.

And the test results surprised everyone when the samples from papaya and goat gave positive results for Covid-19. According to Mr. Magufuli, this means that it is very likely that some people who have been tested with the above kit will be diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2 infection when this is not the case.

"There is something wrong here," he said. "I have previously said that we should not assume that all aid is meant for the nation." In addition, the President also requested a thorough investigation of this issue.

Immediately on 3/5, Mr. Magufuli fired the head of the unit in charge of distributing medical supplies and equipment to government hospitals but gave no specific reason. A day later, Catherine Sungura, the head of the communications department of the Tanzania Ministry of Health, said the laboratory director and manager of the laboratory - the people in charge of the Covid-19 test - were suspended. just to "make way for an investigation".

Accordingly, a committee of 10 people was established to investigate laboratory activities, including sample collection and testing.

A papaya in Tanzania positive for SARS-CoV-2 Picture 2

Tanzanian President - Mr. John Magufuli.

Magufuli said a Tanzanian plane was on its way to Madagascar to import the herbal medicine he proposed, though it had not undergone an internationally recognized scientific experiment.

The president said: "I talked to Madagascar. They have a medicine and we will send a plane there to take medicine back. Thus, the people of Tanzania can benefit."

According to Reuters statistics based on government and World Health Organization data, up to May 3, Tanzania recorded 480 cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection and 17 deaths. However, unlike most other African countries, the updated information on the disease situation is updated quite slowly, with the last update being from April 29.

At the moment, the number of SARS-CoV-2 infections in Africa is at a relatively low level compared to some other hot spots like the US and European countries. Despite this, the continent has a very low Covid-19 test rate, at about 500 tests per 1 million people.