Coronavirus in Kuwait: What we know so far

KUWAIT: Kuwait has so far recorded 61 cases infected with the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), all of which are Kuwaiti patients who returned to the country from Iran. With the exception of two cases Kuwaiti women in their 70s who have been admitted to the intensive care unit with pneumonia, all cases are in stable condition and are recovering in quarantined locations designated by the government for this purpose, while two people have been discharged after exhibiting no symptoms during their 14day quarantine period, the Ministry of Health confirmed. Meanwhile, a 34-year-old Kuwaiti man has recovered completely after previously been infected with the virus, the ministry said. Kuwait is taking measures to test Kuwaitis coming from infected areas for potential infection, as it has already tested over 3,100 people, the overwhelming majority of them have returned from Iran.

Countries’ ban list

As a precautionary measure against the spread of the virus, Kuwait has suspended flights from and to the following countries:

- China

- Hong Kong

- Singapore

- Thailand

- South Korea

- Japan

- Italy

- Iraq

- Iran

In the meantime, Kuwait sent charter flights to bring back Kuwaitis from infected areas, mainly Iran, Italy and Thailand, and test them before entering the country. Meanwhile, authorities have stopped issuing all kinds of visas (visit, work, etc) for Egyptian nationals, while allowing those who already have a visa to enter only after they take tests in Cairo before coming to Kuwait. In the meantime, Iraq has suspended flights from Kuwait, whereas Saudi Arabia stopped issuing umrah visas for all nationalities as a precautionary measures. Furthermore, Kuwait suspended all flights for a week starting March 7 to and from the following countries:

- Egypt

- Lebanon

- Syria

- Bangladesh

- Philippines

- India

- Sri Lanka

This came two days after Kuwait suspended a decision which required travelers to conduct Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests at certified clinics before coming to Kuwait from the Philippines, India, Bangladesh, Egypt, Syria, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Sri Lanka, Georgia, and Lebanon.

Precautions

State departments have been on high alert to take precautions against the potential spread of the virus. The Ministry of Commerce and Industry has taken measures to make sure that facial masks, hand sanitizers and other goods remain accessible to the public. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Education has suspended classes for the first two weeks of March at all public and private schools (for both students and teaching staffs). In the meantime, the Civil Service Commission suspended the biometric fingerprint system for staff attendance until further notice.

Hotlines

The Ministry of Health has set the following hotlines to receive inquiries about the coronavirus 24/7: 24970967 - 96049698 - 99048619.

The Education Ministry set the following hotlines to receive inquiries on school closures related to the anticoronavirus measures:

- 24970967 (24/7 hotline)

- 51575591 (Capital Educational Zone)

- 51576117 (Hawally Educational Zone)

- 51576576 (Farwaniya Educational Zone) - 51577055 (Jahra Educational Zone)

- 51577655 (Ahmadi Educational Zone)

- 51577951 (Mubarak Al-Kabeer Educational Zone) - 51578171 (Religious Studies Department) - 51588599 (Private Education Department) - 51592515 (Services Department)

- 51594544 (Public Relations Department)