Rwanda's 1st coronavirus patient is Indian

An Indian national in Rwanda has been tested positive for the novel coronavirus, becoming the first confirmed case of COVID-19 in the east African country, health officials said on Saturday.

The country's health ministry, in a statement, said that the Indian citizen arrived here from Mumbai on March 8.

"The patient had no symptoms upon arrival in Rwanda and reported himself to a health facility on March 13, where he was immediately tested," the ministry said on Twitter.

He is currently under treatment in stable condition, isolated from other patients, the statement said, adding that the tracing of all contacts has been conducted for further management.

This is the second case in east Africa, after Kenya recorded the first case of COVID-19 on Friday.

The deadly novel coronavirus that first originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan in December last year has claimed over 5,000 lives and infected more than 134,000 people across 110 countries and territories, with the World Health Organisation (WHO) describing the outbreak a pandemic on Wednesday.

In India, the number of coronavirus cases rose to 83 on Saturday, which includes one death each from Delhi and Karnataka.

The Rwandan health ministry advised all residents of Rwanda to continue to observe all instructions from health authorities, particularly by washing hands regularly, avoiding large gatherings, and reporting any symptoms by calling the toll-free number 114.