Topline: As the number of coronavirus cases surpasses <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/world/coronavirus-maps.html?action=click&amp;pgtype=Article&amp;state=default&amp;module=styln-coronavirus&amp;variant=show&amp;region=TOP_BANNER&amp;context=storyline_menu" target="_blank">110,000 people</a> worldwide, with more reported daily, the federal government has issued a number of travel advisories⁠—here’s where to avoid, and where it’s probably okay to visit: 



<ul><li>The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Centers for Disease Control</a>&nbsp;has three levels of travel advisories, with Level 1 being the lowest caution and Level 3 being the highest (with China, Iran, Italy and South Korea on that Level 3 list).</li><li>The CDC has designated Japan with a Level 2 advisory due to ongoing community transmission of the disease, which means older people and people with chronic underlying medical conditions should reconsider traveling there, while Hong Kong is a Level 1 advisory, based on its risk of limited community transmission.</li><li>The&nbsp;<a href="https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories.html/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">State Department</a>&nbsp;also has a four tier travel advisory system, with Level 4 being the most severe warning, and says travel to Level 3 countries Azerbaijan, Mongolia and Turkmenistan should be reconsidered due to the outbreak; the department released a&nbsp;<a href="https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/COVID-19-Country-Specific-Information.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">complete country-by-country advisory database</a>&nbsp;on Monday specifically for coronavirus.</li><li>“I think you can go anywhere [internationally] if you don’t mind being delayed by 14 days,” said Dr. Amesh Adalja, an infectious diseases scholar at Johns Hopkins University, adding, “it’s not in terms of ‘it’s safe’ or ‘not safe,’ but logistically feasible to get home in time” if a traveler is quarantined.</li><li>Adalja said that domestic travel within the U.S. is safe for most people, (and the CDC&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">hasn’t recommended</a>&nbsp;travel restrictions within the U.S.) but “if you’re older or have underlying medical conditions, reconsider nonessential travel because we are likely seeing more community spread.”</li><li>“We have to dispel the notion that coronavirus is a travel-related illness,” said Adalja, because the virus has likely been spreading since November, and health officials are catching up to containment and treatment.</li></ul>



Crucial quote: &#8220;We already have community transmission within the United States,&#8221; Shira Doran, an infectious disease specialist at Tufts University, <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2020/03/06/812650868/coronavirus-travel-tips-to-fly-or-not-to-fly-what-happens-if-you-cancel" target="_blank">told NPR</a> Friday. &#8220;So, at some point, it&#8217;s not going to be any riskier to go to another country than it is to stay right here.&#8221;



Key background:&nbsp;The coronavirus outbreak has&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/isabeltogoh/2020/02/28/updated-here-are-the-destinations-affected-by-coronavirus-flight-cancellations-and-travel-bans/#4b33e377cd68">thrown a wrench</a>&nbsp;into travel worldwide, with numerous airlines cancelling flights, cruise ships quarantining passengers and even domestic trains, such as&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theverge.com/2020/3/7/21169393/amtrak-canceling-nonstop-acela-new-york-washington-dc-coronavirus" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Amtrak’s Acela</a>, canceling service between major cities. Travelers around the world have been quarantined as countries work to contain the disease. Multiple&nbsp;<a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/03/03/811728989/coronavirus-cancellations-and-travel-bans-google-is-latest" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">businesses</a>&nbsp;and corporations have suspended travel for employees. Major conferences and events, like the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2020/03/06/sxsw-cancelled-amidst-coronavirus-fears/">South By Southwest</a>&nbsp;music and culture festival, have also been called off. The CDC has recommended travelers avoid all nonessential travel to Level 3 countries⁠: China, Iran, Italy and South Korea. (Entry by Chinese and Iranian nationals has also been suspended due to the outbreak). And the State Department has advised against all traveling by cruise ships.



Tangent: 15 countries. <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories.html/" target="_blank">That’s how many</a> are designated “Level 4, Do Not Travel” by the State Department. But only one country⁠—China, where the coronavirus is believed to have originated⁠—was designated Level 4 due to the outbreak.



&#8211; <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/lisettevoytko/">Lisette Voytko</a>, Forbes Staff, Business

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Here’s The Worst Places To Travel Because Of The COVID-19 Coronavirus Outbreak

Almost half of Kenya’s population has no access to clean water, according to the World Bank.
Waterborne diseases, such as cholera, typhoid, and hepatitis A, can ravage poorer communities; with women and children most at risk.
Three companies, Jaguar Land Rover, ClimateCare and Vestergaard, are trying to eradicate this problem by supplying schools, in Bungoma County, an agricultural region in Western Kenya, with water filters. The hope is that the children will not get sick if they drink safe water. They’ll then not miss school, be more likely to get good grades and increase their chance of seeing a brighter future.
It’s one of the most underdeveloped areas of Western Kenya. Infrastructure is almost non-existent. The buildings I entered had no plumbing or electricity. The houses and schools were made of mud, wooden poles and corrugated iron. They are dark and humid, like an oven baking in the sun.
The heat inside each classroom is stifling, each small desk is shared by three children – they barely have enough space to write. Many of their uniforms hang from their slight bodies. Parents are forced to buy uniforms that are too large so the children will grow into them. They need to last for years.
Bungoma is an agricultural region. People are reliant on water from nearby streams or boreholes. Both sources are often contaminated by pit latrines.
The harsh elements in Bungoma contradict its natural beauty. The land is green, with small hills rolling as far as the eye can see. Large boulders are littered everywhere. The soil is red and rich in nutrients, making it easier to grow crops. Almost every house has maize, beans or bananas growing around it.
Poverty is rife, buildings are basic or falling apart, and although the main road is tarred and in decent condition, the rest are muddy and inaccessible by car.
Cars are rare anyway. Motorbikes and bicycles are the main form of transport. All are fitted with cushioned seats above the rear wheel to transport passengers. The makeshift taxis swarm along the roads. It seemed chaotic to me but they understand how the system works, and despite my fear, I never saw an accident.
Chicken and goats roam along the sides of the road, past the many spaza shops, cellphone airtime and data vendors, and bike repair shops. These are the most popular businesses for a community that relies on entrepreneurship to survive.
While delivering a water filter to one of the schools, a handful of us walked down a slippery and steep muddy road to a spring at the bottom. We passed women tending their crops, crushing maize or making bricks in large homemade clay ovens. Some are less enterprising though.
A 24-year-old man, spotting us walking through his neighborhood, was intrigued enough to leave his group of friends and the quarts of beer they were glugging. His intrigue soon turned to incredulity when told the filters were for the school and not his home. The fact that his four children would benefit from the filter did not placate him. He told us he needed one because he was poor. His lack of income, though, wouldn’t stop him from having more kids. He said he hoped to have three or four more.
Life is hard in Bungoma and any help is appreciated.
“My biggest hope is to be educated so that I can pass my exams and go to university and look for a job. My biggest challenge will be money, it may be the reason I will not achieve my dream,” says Vivienne Wafula, a shy nine-year-old schoolgirl.
Sharon Cherubet Chepkwemoi, the head girl at her school, dreams of becoming a doctor.
“I want to fix the many challenges that people here face,” she says.
She’ll need to go to university to achieve this.
“My parents are farmers, but they are not that rich, so it will be a challenge.”
Both girls are smart, ambitious and resourceful. Sadly, neither Wafula nor Chepkwemoi are likely to escape the grip of poverty in a part of Africa forgotten by the rest of the world.

Tag: Diseases

FORBES AFRICA SOCIAL MEDIA

Here’s The Worst Places To Travel Because Of The COVID-19 Coronavirus Outbreak

Beauty And Boulders In Bungoma