This is a first on the island of Gorée. The island off Dakar recorded its first case of Covid-19, six months after the onset of the disease in Senegal. The infected person is a man working on the continent and returning regularly to his home in Gorée, said Augustin Senghor, mayor of the island and also president of the Senegalese Football Federation (FSF).
Gorée, where African slaves left for the Americas for several centuries, had until then been preserved by the pandemic. The coronavirus has so far reached 13,056 people in the country and left 274 dead. Half of the cases have been recorded in the Dakar region.
Gorée Island closed to visitors
Located a few kilometers off the Senegalese capital, Gorée has been closed to visitors since the first case reported in Senegal, on March 2. Only its some 2,000 inhabitants spread over 28 hectares are authorized to take the boats that serve the island and ensure its supply.
"We will continue in line with these measures and strengthen them", with stricter control of the wearing of masks and compliance with barrier measures on boarding and disembarking, assured the mayor. The closure of the island has long kept it away from the pandemic, "but, economically, it is very hard for the populations," said the mayor. The latter deplores “60 to 70% losses” due to the closure of shops, hotels, restaurants and craft activities.
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