Week that passed – African countries act to tackle COVID-19
In the week that passed, several African countries, including those which have not reported COVID-19 cases, implemented international travel bans, restricted access through their borders, put in place social distancing measures and financial packages to tackle the outbreak of the virus.
In the wake of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), land-locked Lesotho has declared a national emergency and closed all schools, despite not having any confirmed case of the virus. These steps were not taken by Europe and the United States of America until the peak of the virus in both areas.
Based on the latest figures from the World Health Organisation’s Regional Office for Africa, forty-two African countries and territories have reported a total of 967 confirmed cases. Egypt recorded the continent’s first case on 14th February. Here are the measures that some of the continents countries have taken in the week or weeks that have passed since COVID-19 reared its head.
Measures taken in the week that passed to combat COVID-19 around Africa
Although some have argued that Africa has porous borders, a growing number of its countries are closing their frontiers to prevent intra-continental travel to and from affected neighbours. Mauritius, Nigeria, South Africa and Sudan are among those nations that have closed their borders.
In Egypt, Senegal, Rwanda and Algeria, for instance, religious establishments (such as churches and mosques) have been shut to limit the number of large assemblies. School and universities have also been closed in Cameroon, Chad, Democratic Republic of Congo and Morocco, to name a few.
The central banks of South Africa and eSwatini have both rendered a 100 basis points cut of their main lending rates to commercial banks. South Africa’s rate now settles at 5.25% and eSwatini’s rate rests at 5.5%.
Central (or federal) banks often lower their main lending rates to stimulate economic growth. These rates result in lower debt financing costs, which can then encourage borrowing and investing.
Morocco’s King, Mohammed VI ordered the creation of a 10 billion dirham ($1 billion) fund to upgrade health infrastructure, obtain the required health equipment, provide aid to weakening economic sectors like tourism, assist to maintain jobs and deal with other effects of the pandemic.
The Nigerian Reserve Bank will establish a 50 billion naira ($163 million) fund to tackle the consequences of COVID-19. It will further cut the interest rates of some loans due to it from 9% to 5%.
Tunisia’s Prime Minister said on Saturday that the government will avail 2.5 billion dinars ($850 million) to deal with the effects of the pandemic in the Northern African state.
Travel bans have been instituted by some African countries (like Botswana and the Republic of Congo) for travel to and from high-risk areas ranging from China to Italy. According to John Nkengasong, head of African Union’s Africa Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, the travel bans will delay the spread of the virus, rather than contain it, and certain cases are not being detected. Some countries are taking measures to produce testing kits as reported here.
Matshidiso Moeti, World Health Organisation’s (WHO) Africa head, said only a few cases are not identified and the WHO is looking at setting up pop-up hospitals with ventilators and oxygen equipment. These resources and protective gear, apart from gloves and masks, are limited in the continent.
Africa consists of 17% or 1.3 billion of the world’s overall population of 7.7 billion people.
Thoughts about COVID-19 in Africa
Some have argued that the virus will rapidly be transmitted in informal settlements, which are found in and around most of the continent’s cities and are characterised by cramped dwellings and close proximity. They are further typified by a lack of basic service delivery: water and sanitation, for instance.
In most of such settlements, the sharing of accommodations and communal sanitary facilities with family and community members, respectively, makes the quarantine process difficult, if not impossible.
Other issues include healthcare systems that are strained by ailments ranging from malaria to measles, fatalities from conflict areas, as well as inadequate, poorly maintained healthcare infrastructures.
Possible solutions to these problems are screening at entry points, large scale testing and surveillance of people who have come into contact with (probable) cases. Although these approaches require more financial intervention from governments, they are likely to prevent the extensive spread of the virus and avoid further overburdening of strained, healthcare systems.
The situation is likely to improve when the continent obtains more assistance. One instance of such aid has been received from Jack Ma’s (founder of Alibaba) foundation, which donated 1.1 million testing kits, 6 million masks and 60,000 protective suits and face shields to Ethiopia. The country shall then distribute them to Africa’s 54 nations.
Currently, an overall of 40 African countries have the facilities to test for the pandemic. This is an increase from only two countries (Senegal and South Africa) that were able to do so in early February.
Reporting by Gaby Ndongo. Editing by Kupakwashe Kambasha. Photo by Miguel Á. Padriñán from Pexels.
