Madagascar denies rumours on presence of Zika virus

ANTANANARIVO, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Madagascar's Health Minister Andriamanarivo Lalatiana on Tuesday denied rumours of the presence of Zika virus in the country.

"Information circulating on France's foreign affairs ministry website is erroneous and it has been corrected by the French Embassy," Lalatiana said.

A statement on the French foreign affairs ministry website had recently claimed that Zika virus had been detected in Madagascar.

"The site did not specify the date for detection, nor the nationality or identity of the person who was carrying the virus. Neither did it state the place where the confirmation was made," the minister said.

"At the embassy level, we quickly made changes to the statement, and I am sincerely sorry for the consequences this might have caused," Regional Health Adviser at the French Embassy in Madagascar, Christine Bellas Cabane, said.

She clarified that "the ministry's crisis center only wanted to highlight high potential regions for Zika virus, including Madagascar."

"To date, no suspected case of Zika virus has been confirmed in Madagascar, the statement on the embassy website reads," Cabane said.

"Certainly, the World Health Organization has categorized Madagascar as one of the countries that are vulnerable to this disease, but we already have an action plan in case of its outbreak," Lalatiana said.

He said Madagascar has the necessary equipment for diagnosing any suspected Zika virus case.