COVID-19 pandemic in Burkina Faso

On 9 March 2020, the first two cases in the country were reported in Burkina Faso.[18]

On 13 March, the third case was also confirmed: a person who had had direct contact with the first two cases.[19]

On 14 March, 7 cases confirmed in the country. Five of the new confirmed cases had had direct contact with the first two cases. One is an English national currently working in a gold mine in Burkina Faso and who went to vacation in Liverpool, returning on 10 March, with transits through Vancouver and Paris.[20]

On 15 March, 8 new cases were confirmed according to a statement from the Ministry of Health, bringing the total number of cases to 15.[21]

On 17 March, 20 total cases were confirmed.[22]

On 18 March, the first fatality was confirmed, Rose Marie Compaoré, a 61-year-old woman with a preexisting diabetic condition.[23]

On 18 March, 27 total cases were confirmed.[24]

On 19 March, 33 total cases were confirmed by the Burkina Faso Ministry of Health.[25]

On 20 March, 40 total cases were confirmed. President Roch Marc Christian Kabore closed airports, land borders and imposed a nationwide curfew to curb the spread of the pandemic.[26] Burkina Faso's Education Minister Stanislas Ouaro said he had tested positive for the coronavirus.[27]

On 21 March, 64 total cases and 3 deaths were confirmed. Minister of Mines and Quarries, Oumarou Idani, tested positive for COVID-19 after returning from a conference in Toronto, Canada.

On 22 March, 75 total confirmed cases. Four key government ministers are confirmed to be infected,[28] these ministers are: Alpha Barry, Minister of Foreign Affairs; Oumarou Idani, Minister of Mines and Quarries; Stanislas Ouaro, Minister of Education; and Simeon Sawadogo, Minister of Interior.[29] Five cases, including the original couple, have recovered.[30] The U.S. Ambassador to Burkina Faso, Andrew Robert Young, tested positive. Five deaths have been confirmed.[31]

On 23 March, the Burkina Faso Ministry of Health confirmed 100 cases of COVID-19 in Burkina Faso. The U.S. Embassy has begun to repatriate citizens to the United States.[32] Harouna Kaboré, the Minister of Trade, tested positive for coronavirus.[33][34]

On March 24, the Burkina Faso Ministry of Health confirmed 114 cases of COVID-19 in Burkina Faso, 89 in Ouagadougou, 4 in Bobo-Dioulasso, 2 in Dedougou, 2 in Boromo, and 1 in Houndé.[35]

On March 30, with 12 deaths, Burkina Faso has the most fatalities in sub-Saharan Africa. Burkina Faso has just one hospital currently configured to receive coronavirus patients, and it only has a handful of ventilators. At least six government ministers have since tested positive for the virus, as have two foreign ambassadors, from Italy and the United States. A single testing laboratory in Bobo-Dioulasso – a five-hour drive from the capital of Ouagdougou – means suspected cases all over the country have to wait at least 12 hours for results. The government said it wants to establish a second laboratory in Ouagadougou but has no one qualified to set up the equipment in the country. With borders sealed, the process of bringing in an outsider is being delayed.[36]

By the end March there had been 261 positive tests, 14 deaths and 32 recovered patients. There were 215 active cases at the end of the month.[37]

There were 384 new cases in April, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 645. The death toll rose by 29 to 43. The number of recovered patients increased to 506, leaving 96 active cases at the end of the month (55% fewer than at the end of March).[38]

In May there were 202 new cases, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 847. The death toll rose by 10 to 53. The number of recovered patients increased by 214 to 720, leaving 74 active cases at the end of the month (a decrease by 23% from the end of April).[39]

During June there were 115 new cases, bringing the total number of cases to 962. There were no new deaths. The number of recovered patients grew by 118 to 838, leaving 71 active cases at the end of the month (a decrease by 4% from the end of May).[40]

During July there were 176 new cases, bringing the total number of cases to 1138. The death toll remained unchanged. The number of recovered patients by 129 to 967, leaving 118 active cases at the end of the month (an increase by 66% from the end of June).[41]

There were 232 new cases in August, bringing the total number of cases to 1370. The death toll rose to 55. The number of active cases at the end of the month was 255: more than twice as many as the end of July.[42]

There were 658 new cases in September, bringing the total number of cases to 2028. The death toll rose to 57. The number of recovered patients increased to 1279, leaving 692 active cases at the end of the month.[43]

There were 472 new cases in October, bringing the total number of cases to 2500. The death toll rose to 67. The number of recovered patients increased to 2250, leaving 183 active cases at the end of the month.[44]

There were 386 new cases in November, bringing the total number of cases to 2886. The death toll rose to 68. The number of recovered patients increased to 2593, leaving 225 active cases at the end of the month.[45]

There were 3,745 new cases in December, bringing the total number of cases to 6,631. The death toll rose to 84. The number of recovered patients increased to 4,978, leaving 1,569 active cases at the end of the month.[46]

There were 4,051 new cases in January, bringing the total number of cases to 10,682. The death toll rose to 120. The number of recovered patients increased to 9,253, leaving 1,309 active cases at the end of the month.[47]