ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada, CMC—Grenada confirmed Wednesday that Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell, who left earlier this week for Rwanda, has not traveled to the African country because of the Marburg Virus Disease (MVD) outbreak.
Press Secretary Neila Ettienne confirmed that Mitchell, the chairman of the 15-member regional integration grouping CARICOM, is not among the leaders attending the Biashara Afrika Forum in Kigali because of the virus.
In his keynote address to the Forum, the host head of state, Paul Kagame, expressed appreciation to those who were in attendance, saying, “It takes some amount of courage to proceed from wherever you were because of the virus that has been going around.”
On Monday, a government statement said that Prime Minister Mitchell had left Grenada for Rwanda, and in his absence, Finance Minister Dennis Cornwall would be the acting Prime Minister.
But Ettienne confirmed that the Prime Minister did not arrive at the Forum because of “unforeseen circumstances,” responding in the affirmative when asked if his decision to not attend was because of the virus, as President Kagame mentioned.
“Yes, his decision to not attend was based on the virus,” she added.
As of Wednesday, Prime Minister Mitchell and his delegation had yet to return home, and his whereabouts have yet to be disclosed.
The Ministry of Health in Rwanda said the country is battling its first-ever outbreak of MVD, a deadly illness related to Ebola. The disease does not have any approved vaccines or treatments. It was first confirmed on September 27, and as of October 6, the outbreak had infected 56 people and killed 12.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the MVD is transmitted to humans from fruit bats and then through contact with bodily fluids of infected individuals.
Symptoms generally appear three to 21 days after exposure to an infected person. They include severe headache, feeling weak, fever, watery diarrhea, abdominal pain, bleeding from different sites, including under the skin, and feeling sick.
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