by Xie Meihua

    NAIROBI, June 28 (Xinhua) -- The A/H1N1 flu which once spared the African continent as it was ravaging the most parts of the world is now knocking at doors of African countries in the sub-Sahara region with at least three countries reporting confirmed cases of the virus in the past weeks.

    South Africa was the first one which reported its first confirmed case of A/H1N1 flu in the region on June 18. The country's health department announced that the patient, a 12-year-old boy, arrived in South Africa at OR Tambo international Airport from the United States a couple of days ago.

    The boy, a U.S. citizen, had flu-like symptoms and was admitted to a private hospital two days after arrival.

    The health department said the patient was kept in isolation and discharged after a few days in hospital, and that He was well and recovering in isolation at home around Gauteng.

    All contacts had been followed up and given necessary advice and treatment, the department also said.

    Exactly One week later on June 25, South Africa announced the second case of the A/H1N1 flu. Spokesman for the health department Fidel Hadebe said a 29-year-old rugby player, who livesin France and arrived in the country, took ill a couple of days ago.

    "He was admitted to a hospital (in Pretoria, Gauteng) where specimens were taken from him for testing. The results came back on Thursday (June 25) and they were positive," he said.

    "The fact that we have a fast turn around time to trace the H1N1 influenza is indicative that we are prepared to deal with it and there is no need for people to worry," Hadebe said.

    Ethiopia confirmed its first cases of A/H1N1 flu on June 20.At a joint press conference, Liya Kebede, the general manager of St. Paulos Hospital in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa, said the virus was detected in two of three students who came here from the United States following an examination.

    She said the examination was made on the students upon their arrival at the Addis Ababa Bole International Airport after their arrivals.

    At the same time, Ahmed Emano, head of public relations of the country's Ministry of Health, told journalists the biopsy of the students which was sent abroad for confirmation showed that they had the virus.

    Ahmed said the result demonstrated that the checkup service made in the country was reliable.

    Two cases of A/H1N1 flu were diagnosed in Cote d'Ivoire on Saturday (June 27). The western African country made the announcement after the World Heath Organization (WHO) analyzed the two suspected cases reported several days ago and found them positive.

    Two women were tested positive for A/H1N1 virus after they were suspected of suffering from the pandemic on June 19, when they disembarked from a passenger plane from Brussels, Belgium.

    After finding the first suspected case, 48 people who approached the woman and 57 other passengers on the same flight with her were put under epidemiologic surveillance, surveillance director Daniel Ekra said.

    The two patients were admitted to hospital and in good conditions, Ekra said, adding that "all the measures are being taken to contain the spread of the virus in Cote d'Ivoire."

    Other African countries in the sub-Sahara region have been on high alert, attempting to keep the epidemic out of their doors.

    Zimbabwe Health and Child Welfare Minister Dr Henry Madzorera warned on Friday that the potential for the pandemic to cause a disaster was real and that his ministry had put intervention measures in place.

    "The continued spread of the pandemic and the fact that cases have been diagnosed in Egypt and South Africa puts Zimbabwe at a real risk, hence the need for an informed population and a ready health services system," he said.

    "The ministry has put in place a national taskforce to oversee the necessary preparedness and response required at every level ofservice delivery," he said.

    He added that the taskforce had membership from all sectors and would be responsible for putting in place preparedness and response plans, which he said would be ready for circulation in the next two weeks.

    Asked if the country's ports of entry were ready to deal with cases of the flu, he said, "The ministry has made an assessment of these places for purposes of strengthening awareness, surveillance and preparedness and response capacity of the ministry staff, immigration and other workers at ports of entry and other stakeholders."

    In Kenya where a suspected case of the A/H1N1 was cleared on Saturday, Public Heath and Sanitation Minister Beth Mugo tried to ease the panic of the public triggered by the suspected case.

    The minister downplayed the case, saying the reported case "wasjust a scare" and the disease was treatable.

    She said Kenya had strengthened surveillance at airports and other border entry points following the outbreak of the disease.

    The A/H1N1 flu, which was first detected in Mexico late in April, has spread quickly to other regions of the world including Africa. The A/H1N1 flu develops symptoms of fever, cough, sore throat, headache and fatigue.

    In mid June, the World Health Organization (WHO) raised the pandemic alert status from phase 5 to phase 6, which meant that the disease had reached the emergency level.

    According to WHO's official tally, a total of 55,867 cases and 238 deaths were confirmed worldwide as of Wednesday.

Special Report:  World Tackles A/H1N1 Flu