The coronavirus has wreaked havoc across the world since its outbreak in China in December 2019. The deadly virus quickly spread far and wide at an alarming rate, with more than 1.8 million people being infected by COVID-19. The World Health Organisation (WHO) in early March characterised it as a global pandemic—an epidemic on a far greater geographic scale that affects a large number of people.
The virus, which affects the respiratory system, has so far claimed over 116,000 lives. Nearly 435,000 people have so far recovered from COVID-19.
However, there are still a few countries that have not reported a single case of COVID-19.
Here are a few countries that have not yet reported cases of COVID-19:
1. Comoros
2. Kiribati
3. Lesotho
4. Marshall Islands
5. Micronesia
6. Nauru
7. North Korea
8. Palau
9. Samoa
10. Sao Tome and Principe
11. Solomon Islands
12. Tajikistan
13. Tonga
14. Turkmenistan
15. Tuvalu
16. Vanuatu
As per reports, many of the countries mentioned above may not have coronavirus cases as they had restricted travel and taken measures to prevent the arrival of the virus. Micronesia and Solomon Islands, in its part, declared a public health emergency and enacted strict measures, including sealing of borders, prohibiting travel and avoiding social gathering among other things.
However, there is scepticism, especially in the case of North Korea. The country has not reported any cases of COVID-19, although it had also taken preventive measures. However, its high degree of secrecy, gag on media, lack of testing and weak healthcare system leads to reasons for scepticism.
It is yet to be determined the exact causes for the virus to have spared these countries so far.