Libreville, the Gabonese capital, will be confined "in the coming days" to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus, announced President Ali Bongo Ondimba on Friday. "As a precaution, I instructed the Prime Minister to take all measures to contain Greater Libreville in the coming days," said the president in a televised speech.
Gabon has officially registered 21 people infected with the new coronavirus since the start of the pandemic. All but one are located in the capital, Libreville, which accounts for a large part of the two million inhabitants of the Central African country.
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The president also announced a "massive effort of the order of 250 billion CFA francs" (380 million euros) to help individuals (payment of part of salaries, freezing of rents for the lowest income) and businesses (tax rebates, funding window). In Central Africa, Equatorial Guinea announced Thursday "the state of health alert" , after declaring the confinement of the mainland.
Another country neighboring Gabon, Cameroon, which performs more tests and has detected more than 500 people infected with the new coronavirus, has not announced containment measures.
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