Colombia plans to announce a nationwide quarantine from Tuesday night, President Ivan Duque's office said on Friday. The quarantine will last for 19 days to 13 April, it added.
En desarrollo del estado de emergencia aplicaremos un aislamiento preventivo obligatorio para todos los colombianos desde el próximo martes 24 de marzo a las 23:59 horas hasta el lunes 13 de abril a las 00:00 horas. #PrevenciónyAcción pic.twitter.com/r1GKSr8Hcz
— Presidencia Colombia (@infopresidencia) March 21, 2020
On 6 March, the first case of coronavirus was confirmed in the country, according to the National Health Ministry.
Earlier in the week, the president said that Colombia would close its border with Venezuela due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic at 05:00 a.m. (10:00 GMT) on 14 March.
In addition, beginning last Monday, foreigners who do not have a Colombian residence permit and have traveled to Europe or Asia during the past two weeks were banned from entering the country. Meanwhile, Colombian citizens and residents were required to be quarantined for 14 days upon their arrival.
According to the World Health Organisation, as of 19 March, there were 108 coronavirus cases registered in Colombia. As of 21 March, Colombia has 128 people infected by the virus, Johns Hopkins University data shows.
