Contrary to earlier beliefs that Molepolole is the Wuhan of Botswana’s Covid-19 pandemic, official data has revealed that the unflattering title belongs to Gaborone.
Of 24 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Botswana, more than half are in Gaborone. Out of the 13 cases in Gaborone, 11 have recovered and only two are still active.
The latest information on Botswana’s index case also known as patient zero also raises more questions than answers. The term is used to describe the first human infected by a viral or bacterial disease in an outbreak.
According to official information Botswana’s index case is in Gaborone after entering the country on 30th March 2020.
Earlier information suggested that Botswana’s index case was the Ramotswa woman who entered Botswana from South Africa on March 15th 2020, more than two weeks before the official index case entered Botswana.
While the Ramotswa woman has since passed on, the official patient zero is understood to have recovered and is no longer active. While health authorities have been able to trace back the lineage of local infections to the Gaborone patient, the Ramotswa old woman has not had any local infections, raising doubts that the test may have posted a false positive.
