Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Outbreak

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by a new virus. The disease causes respiratory illness (like the flu) with symptoms such as a cough, fever, and in more severe cases, difficulty breathing.

The outbreak was first identified in Wuhan, Hubei, China, in December 2019, and was recognized as a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) on 11 March 2020.

Coronavirus - a fast-moving infection originating in China - has spread to 188 countries and claimed more than 13,000 lives. The World Health Organization (WHO) officially declared the outbreak to be a pandemic.

Coronavirus spreads when an infected person coughs small droplets - packed with the virus - into the air. These can be breathed in, or cause an infection if you touch a surface they have landed on then your eyes, nose or mouth.

So, coughing and sneezing into tissues, not touching your face with unwashed hands, and avoiding close contact with infected people are important for limiting the spread.

In Bangladesh so far 24 people have been infected and 2 people have died. Those who have died reported aged over 70. Now, there are 19 active cases and 3 people have been cured of the virus.

ADRA in Bangladesh is functioning enthusiastically aiming to prevent this deadly virus. ADRA project staff are working rigorously to raise public awareness of Coronavirus Disease COVID-19 by disseminating posters and leaflets among the local community. ADRA spreads the key messages among the community people in terms of stopping the transmission of the deadly virus.

The Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR) claimed that Bangladesh is ready to tackle an outbreak of COVID-19. Recently, the country has undertaken a four-level emergency plan to prevent the spread of the virus.