When the country reported the initial cases on 18 March, it took just five weeks to bring down the infections from a cluster of local cases to zero cases, making Mauritius the first in Africa to contain the spread of COVID-19. The achievement is largely credited to quick action in enforcing a raft of stringent preventive and control measures.
Soon after the first cases were detected, Mauritius imposed a nationwide lockdown, stepped up screening, contact tracing and public awareness on preventive measures. It also enhanced testing and invested more resources in the response, procuring medicines and equipment.
Mauritius was among 13 African countries identified by WHO at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic as being at high risk due to high volume of international travel, high prevalence of noncommunicable diseases, high population density and long life expectancy.
Strong political commitment, strong preparedness and response coordination, in which WHO played a key role, has been instrumental in curbing the virus.