Truck drivers pose new virus threat to Uganda

Uganda is grappling with how to reduce coronavirus infections among cross-border truck drivers who account for most of the new cases being reported in the country.

President Yoweri Museveni has advised the drivers not to touch each other so as to stop the spread of the virus. His advise comes as the number of foreign truck drivers who have tested positive reached 11, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 74.

Mr Museveni said that his health minister was in discussions with her Kenyan and Tanzanian counterparts to find a solution to the new threat to the country's Covid-19 fight.

The president said among the issues to be discussed is for the drivers to be tested and wait for results before starting their journeys.

Mr Museveni also said that the ministers were discussing driving relays - where a driver hands over the truck to a local on arrival at the border.

The president said stopping trucks from coming was impossible as Uganda is a landlocked country and the economy would suffer.