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HomeWeekly RoundupCOVID-19 continues to evolve rapidly on the African continent – WHO report

COVID-19 continues to evolve rapidly on the African continent – WHO report

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has said in its latest situation report on the COVID-19 outbreak in Africa that the outbreak continues to rapidly evolve on the continent.

The WHO said: “Since our last situation report on 25 March 2020 (External Situation Report 4), four new countries in the WHO African Region, including Botswana, Burundi, Guinea Bissau and Sierra Leonne have reported confirmed COVID-19 cases. Forty-two (89%) out of 47 Member States of the WHO African Region are now affected.

“The exponential growth of this outbreak in the WHO African Region is of grave concern considering that the public health ecosystem of many of the affected countries is characterised by fragile health systems and a high prevalence of HIV, malnutrition and other comorbidities which can increase the severity of COVID-19 and represent an additional strain on the health system.

“The decreasing trend observed in the past few days may not reflect a true decline in case incidence, but may be due to delayed reporting. Delayed and incomplete data, or lack of data sharing hinders the generation of timely, accurate and informative epidemiological analyses, which should guide strategic response.

“Border closure and existing restrictions in international travel constitute major impediments for the deployment of experts to support response activities and for the provision of essential goods such as laboratory reagents and personal protective equipment.

“It is essential that African governments continue to promote strict adherence to proven public health measures such as social distancing, good personal hygiene practices and cough etiquette. Health information management and data sharing needs to be strengthened in all affected countries. In countries with no reported confirmed cases, preparedness and readiness activities should be scaled up and closely monitored.”

The WHO says data on Africa’s confirmed coronavirus cases fairly reflects the underlying trend even though governments are grappling with a shortage of test kits.

A report on the Fin24 site notes that governments across the continent have closed their borders and placed countries or cities under lockdown to prevent widespread contagion in a region with under-resourced healthcare systems. “We clearly are not seeing 100% of the people who are infected, but I do not think that there are large numbers of people who have been missed by the detection systems,” said Matshidiso Moeti, WHO regional director for Africa.

But, according to WHO Africa regional director Dr Matshidiso Moeti, COVID-19 continues to threaten the already fragile health systems on the continent. Polity reports that Moeti said infections were increasingly spreading not only between African countries but within different localities in the hardest-hit countries. The Democratic Republic of the Congo has seen cases spread to eastern regions that have been battling an Ebola outbreak.

While South Africa has implemented a nationwide lockdown, cases have spread to every province. Burkina Faso, Senegal and Cameroon have also seen widespread outbreaks. “It took 16 days from the first confirmed case in the region to reach 100 cases. It took a further 10 days to reach the first thousand. Three days after this, there were 2,000 cases, and two days later we were at 3,000,” said Moeti.

The report says while governments turn to lockdowns and other restrictive measures in a bid to contain the virus, the WHO urged countries to ensure that people still had access to basic necessities. It further explained that for socially restrictive measures to be effective it must be accompanied by strong, sustained and targeted public health measures that locate, isolate, test and treat COVID-19 cases.

Alibaba founder Jack Ma has announced the donation of another batch of medical supplies to each of the 54 African countries, through the Jack Ma Foundation. Polity reports that in March, the Foundation had announced their commitment to donating 100,000 medical masks, 20,000 test kits and 1,000 protective suits and face shields to each country. The latest donation includes 500 ventilators, 200,000 suits and face shields, 2,000 thermometers, 1m swabs and extraction kits, and 500,000 gloves.

The report says the supplies will be transported with the assistance of the Foundation’s partners, the Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Food Programme and Ethiopian Airlines.

Moreover, the Jack Ma Foundation and Alibaba Foundation are aiming to connect African medical professionals with doctors from China and around the world to collaborate online and exchange lessons learnt in the treatment and prevention of COVID-19.

The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) has rejected the federal government's proposed invitation of an 18-member Chinese medical team to support the country's fight against coronavirus. According to a Premium Times report, NMA President, Francis Faduyile said the move is a misplaced priority. He described it as "a thing of embarrassment to the membership of the association and other health workers who are giving their best in the fight against COVID-19 pandemic under deplorable working conditions."

The report says the plan of inviting an 18-member team of Chinese medial experts to Nigeria has been criticised since it was announced Friday by health minister, Osagie Ehanire. The Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) had advised the federal government against the plan, saying it was unnecessary to invite Chinese doctors as Nigeria was already handling the crisis effectively.

However, the report says, the director-general of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Garba Abari, has clarified the reasons behind the proposed visit. He said the Chinese medical team were only coming to share experiences with the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and not to directly take charge of the fight against COVID-19 pandemic in the country. He said they will be sharing experiences on how the pandemic was handled in China and giving expert suggestions to our medical teams.

In other news, Nigeria is looking to set up a $1.3bn fund to boost its fragile healthcare system for the fight against the pandemic, officials said in a News24 report. Finance Minister Zainab Ahmed met senior lawmakers to discuss creating the fund from government “special accounts” and international loans.

The proposed fund is still subject to negotiations and would need to be approved by lawmakers, who have suspended their sittings due to the virus. Nigeria has recorded 209 confirmed infections and four deaths from the infection.

Rwandan prime minister Édouard Ngirente has announced that cabinet ministers will forfeit their April salaries to show solidarity with citizens as the country battles the coronavirus.

“In the context of the fight against COVID-19, and in solidarity with most affected Rwandans, the Government of Rwanda has decided over and above ongoing social protection initiatives, that all cabinet members, permanent secretaries, heads of public institutions and other senior officials shall forfeit one month’s salary (April),” Ngirente is quoted in a Polity report as saying.

And the Rwandan government has extended rigid restrictions imposed last month to 19 April. The lockdown that begun on 21 March banned people from leaving their homes unless shopping for food or medicine.

BBC News reports that it was due to end this weekend but has been extended by cabinet after the number of confirmed cases climbed from 17 to 82 in two weeks. During the extended lockdown, the borders will remain closed and only the entry of Rwandan citizens will be allowed.

Tunisia's parliament has given Prime Minister Elyes Fakhfakh special powers for two months to allow for the accelerated adoption of measures to combat the spread of the novel coronavirus. A report on the News24 site notes that he will be able to issue decrees without referring to the legislature in an effort to battle the pandemic in the North African country.

The decision was passed by 178 members of the 217-strong parliament during a plenary session. “It was necessary because the executive power must take the reins quickly to amend the law on finance for example, or modify penal procedures in order to enforce the lockdown,” said Nessryne Jelalia, head of the Al Bawsala NGO, which monitors parliamentary decisions.

Malawian President Peter Mutharika and all government Ministers are taking a 10% wage cut for three months to raise money to tackle the outbreak. BBC News reports that he made the announcement as he set out a stimulus package to help cushion the economic impact of the disease.

Malawi has now reported its first cases, becoming one of the last countries to do so, and a state of emergency has been declared.

City Press reports, meanwhile, that fake news is rife in Africa. In Nigeria, where most of the country’s 200m inhabitants live on less than $2 a day, soap, clean water and hand sanitiser are often out of reach. “Gargling with warm water and salt or vinegar eliminates the virus,” advised a WhatsApp message. A Facebook post said “sliced lemon in a glass of warm water can save your life”.

Adaora Ikenze, Facebook’s head of public policy in West Africa, said some of the company’s team of more than 30,000 technicians who monitor content globally were checking Nigerian posts, while third-party fact-checkers monitor posts in the country’s main languages, including Hausa, Yoruba and Igbo. “This is a global crisis and we are taking particular steps to support global efforts. It is unfortunate that some people use our platform for negative activities, but we are working hard (to stop the dissemination of false Covid-19 cure claims),” he said.

City Press reports that a partnership with the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) which was launched in February sees accurate information approved by global health organisations sent to WhatsApp users, and the NCDC posting information at the top of Facebook feeds.

And, despite loud appeals for caution, Africans are rushing to embrace chloroquine, the venerable anti-malaria drug touted as a possible treatment for coronavirus. From hospitals in Senegal to pharmaceutical companies in South Africa and street sellers in Cameroon, chloroquine has fired hopes of a medicinal fix against the pandemic.

A report on the News24 site notes that chloroquine and derivatives such as hydroxychloroquine have been used for decades as cheap and safe drugs against malaria, although their effectiveness in this field is now undermined by growing parasite resistance.

Small-scale tests in China and France suggest that chloroquine reduces virus levels in people with coronavirus. Health watchdogs have issued calls for caution until larger clinical trials are carried out, and there have been several recorded deaths from self-medication because of toxic side effects.

[link url="https://reliefweb.int/report/south-africa/covid-19-situation-update-who-african-region-external-situation-report-5-1-april"]WHO material[/link]

[link url="https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/331655/SITREP_COVID-19_WHOAFRO_20200401-eng.pdf"]WHO Situation report[/link]

[link url="https://m.fin24.com/Economy/Africa/africas-coronavirus-infection-data-is-correct-says-who-20200402"]Full report on the Fin24 site[/link]

[link url="https://www.polity.org.za/article/covid-19-threatening-fragile-health-systems-in-africa-who-2020-04-03"]Full Polity report[/link]

[link url="https://www.polity.org.za/article/alibaba-founder-jack-ma-donates-further-medical-supplies-to-africa-2020-04-06"]Full Polity report[/link]

[link url="https://allafrica.com/stories/202004060175.html"]Full Premium Times report[/link]

[link url="https://www.news24.com/Africa/News/nigeria-eyes-13bn-health-fund-to-tackle-virus-20200405"]Full News24 report[/link]

[link url="https://www.polity.org.za/article/rwandan-cabinet-forfeits-april-salaries-in-solidarity-with-citizens-2020-04-06"]Full Polity report[/link]

[link url="https://www.bbc.com/news/live/world-africa-47639452?ns_mchannel=social&ns_source=twitter&ns_campaign=bbc_live&ns_linkname=5e856c394e049e066f5965fb%26Rwanda%20extends%20coronavirus%20lockdown%20by%20two%20weeks%262020-04-02T04%3A39%3A07.855Z&ns_fee=0&pinned_post_locator=urn:asset:cbdadd6c-9d87-42f0-921c-8b2f42c19d62&pinned_post_asset_id=5e856c394e049e066f5965fb&pinned_post_type=share"]Full BBC News report[/link]

[link url="https://www.news24.com/Africa/News/tunisian-parliament-grants-pm-special-powers-amid-pandemic-20200405"]Full News24 report[/link]

[link url="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-52172164?SThisFB="]Full BBC News report[/link]

[link url="https://city-press.news24.com/News/fake-covid-19-cures-soar-in-nigeria-as-social-media-companies-battle-to-keep-up-20200402"]Full City Press report[/link]

[link url="https://www.news24.com/Africa/News/coronavirus-african-countries-reach-for-malaria-medicine-20200401"]Full News24 report[/link]

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