Three countries around the world have been opaque in terms of access to information about Covid-19.
However, there are zero case isolated islands such as Tuvalu, Helena and Kiribati. WHO encourages all countries to share data to World Health Organization or publicly. This makes it possible to track the spread of the virus around the globe.
Tanzania
Tanzania has not updated their Covid-19 data since May 2020. Tanzanian president John Pombe Magufuli has repeatedly down played the Covid-19 virus. Further, he has refused to acquire vaccines for the 58 million strong citizens.
Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan in Central Asia has “not reported any Covid-19 cases to World Health Organization to date” according to World Health Organization. However human rights groups have revealed that Covid is spreading fast in that country.
Turkmenistan, one of the most repressive states in the world according to Human Rights Watch, have urged mask wearing and social distancing and restricted travel. However, the government indicates that the masks are to protect citizens against “dust”.
The government of Turkmenistan does not recognize Covid-19 hence leaving many people unable to access proper treatment and doctors with no basic information on how to handle the disease. There is insufficient supplies of oxygen and access to ventilators is limited.
Turkmenistan has a population of 6 million people and no independent media to provide information for the people according to Freedom House.
World Health Organization had in the past urged President Gurbanguly Berdymujhamedov to allow the global health body to conduct independent investigations in Turkmenistan on Covid-19.
North Korea
North Korea has not recorded a single case of coronavirus. Many pundits are disputing that claim. According to the WHO regional Office for Europe, 14 countries have reported zero cases of coronavirus but the health body was not able to independently verify those claims.
There has been concerns over the accuracy of North Korea’s data on Covid-19. In a statement released on January 8, North Korea reported that they had tested 13,257 people and never found even a single case of Covid-19. No additional updates have ever been made ever since.
In 2020, North Korea severed all the remaining scanty ties with the outside world in order to prevent the spread of Covid-19 in the country. This includes most of the trade ties with Beijing which was important for food supplies to North Korea.
North Korea’s President Kim Jong Un has appeared in the public on several occasions without a mask during the pandemic period to underscore his point that there is no Covid-19 in the country.
Drobac calls for application of more diplomatic pressure to countries such as North Korea and Tanzania because the fight against Covid-19 is a collective responsibility.
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