Novel Coronavirus

In response, Minister Jelta Wong said: "My point in the television interview on Tuesday 4 February, 2020, was not to announce that students living in Mainland China are not important, rather it was to highlight the importance of minimising the risk of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCOV) from entering PNG borders - and that a mitigation process must be followed.

PNG High Commissioner to New Zealand, Francis Agwi, also said he was informed by the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs that no one at the isolation facility in Whangaparoa, including the 17 PNG students who were evacuated out of Wuhan by the New Zealand government, has shown any signs of infection, nor been tested positive for Novel Coronavirus.

The department also said Kundu Beijing is very much aware of the dire situation that other students are in, as prices of food, water, medical fees, electricity and masks have dramatically increased since the virus outbreak.