On the 3rd of August, the Ivorian Presidency announced that President Alassane Ouatarra was self isolating after being possibly exposed to coronavirus.
The Presidency was however quiet on whether the President tested positive until Wednesday August 18th, when it revealed the President had battled the virus and has now tested negative.
The statement also said President Ouattara, 79, has returned to his normal activities of presiding over the cocoa-rich West African nation.
Concerns had been raised over the President’s health with the virus killing some African leaders last year and this year. Most notable of these deaths was Tanzanian President John Magufuli’s.
Magufuli lived in denial of the virus for many months before his eventual demise as a result of contracting the virus.
Some former African leaders and those still serving including top parliamentarians in Burkina Faso, Chief of Staff to the Nigerian President, former state governors and many others also died from the Coronavirus infection.
The news of Ouattara’s recovery has been greeted with satisfaction from all quarters on the continent as his state of health had been a cause for concern.