The Ghana embassy in Madrid, Spain, has suspended consular services until further notice over the outbreak of the coronavirus infection (COVID-19) in that country.

The suspension started on Wednesday, March 4, 2020, and according to the consulate, it is “aimed at protecting the general public who gather at the embassy for the consular services, and the officers who attend to them from contracting the virus.”

According to Spanish authorities, total confirmed cases of the virus as at Wednesday, March 4, was 198 with one death.

Globally, the number of reported coronavirus cases stood at 92,943, the World Health Organization said, with 3,160 people dead from the virus.

The virus has reached 81 countries and territories around the world, with South Korea, Iran and Italy emerging as hotspots outside China.

The number of confirmed cases in Italy is more than 3,000.

In Ghana over 40 suspected cases have all tested negative.