Africa's first case of the Coronavirus has been detected in Zambia.
This is according to Health Department Minister, Zweli Mkhize, who briefed the media on South Africa's readiness to detect and contain the virus on Wednesday.
Mkhize said although there is not much information available at this point, the South African government is keeping a close eye on the case.
He said, "our National Institute for Communicable Diseases is working closely with the authorities in Zambia so that we are always in contact with the situation."
"From here we are able to detect everything that is happening in the continent, as soon as there's something reported, we happen to pick that up fairly quickly."
Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) said it hasn't recommended any travel or trade restrictions, following the outbreak.
WHO Health and Safety head, Doctor Brian Chinonbo, said these decisions can only be taken by national governments.
To date, the new type of Coronavirus which first broke out in the central city of Wuhan, in China, in December has claimed more than one hundred lives.
