South Sudan’s government on Monday closed all airports and land crossings over fears about the spread of coronavirus.

This was disclosed in a statement made by the Undersecretary of the National Ministry of Health, Makur Matur Koryom.

Makur said only cargo planes will be allowed to land at the airports. “Also to be allowed are aircrafts on account of emergency and relief flights,” he added.

The official stated that nobody will be allowed to enter the country through its land, except for food trucks and fuel tankers.

The health official urged people not to ignore advice from medical experts and told citizens to stay away from crowded places.

“Law enforcement agencies are instructed to take measures to disperse illegal gatherings,” he said.

The government official noted that the new measures were taken to keep citizens safe.

According to Makur, the high-level taskforce on the new coronavirus has allocated 3 million USD to cater for the needs of South Sudanese students in countries affected by the deadly coronavirus, also known as COVID-19.

South Sudan which has not yet registered any case of coronavirus is stepping up its efforts to prevent the pandemic.

Key symptoms of coronavirus include dry cough, shortness of breath and fever.

A person can also get infected with coronavirus by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching their own mouth, nose, or their eyes.

People are being advised by health officials to observe high standards of hygiene and limit unnecessary human contact.

More than 15,400 people have died from the new coronavirus, globally. An estimated 100,000 of the 362,000 people who have been diagnosed with the disease across the world have recovered, according to data collected by Johns Hopkins University.