Chadians who fail to comply with the obligation to wear a mask in public places are liable to a prison sentence of up to 15 days, according to a government decree signed on Sunday. "Anyone (who) does not respect the wearing of the mask will be punished with a fine of 2,000 CFA francs (3.5 euros) and may also be imprisoned for up to fifteen days at most" , according to this decree issued by the Minister of Defense and Security, Mahamat Abali Salah, applicable from this Sunday.
The wearing of a mask to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus has been mandatory in Chad since Thursday. The measure has so far been little respected in the streets of the capital, N'Djamena, observed an AFP journalist on Sunday. In mid-April, the authorities announced an obligation to wear the mask in public, before retracting, recognizing a lack of protective equipment available on its territory.
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Chad, a poor Sahelian country with a failing health system, officially counted 322 cases of new coronavirus on Sunday, including 31 deaths.
The main cities of the country, including N'Djamena, have been isolated from the rest of the territory since Friday for a period of 15 days. In this country of 16 million inhabitants, health emergencies are frequent and affect nearly 2 million people. Chad is facing other epidemics including that of measles, with, between January and November 2019, more than 25,500 suspected cases, including 255 deaths.
