AfDB Unveils $10bn Response Facility to Curb COVID-19 in Africa

The African Development Bank (AfDB) Group has announced 10 billion dollars COVID-19 Response Facility to assist regional member countries to fight the pandemic. The bank’s Communication and External Relations Department made this known in a statement on Wednesday. The bank noted that the facility was the latest measure taken by it to respond to the pandemic and would be the institution’s primary channel for its efforts to address the crisis. The AfDB said the fund would...

S. African President Punishes Minister for Violating Lockdown Regulations

President Cyril Ramaphosa has placed Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies, Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams, on a two-month special leave after she violated lockdown regulations, the Presidency said on Wednesday. Of Ndabeni-Abrahams’ two months special leave, one month will be unpaid, the Presidency said in a statement. “As to allegations that the minister violated the lockdown regulations, the law should take its course,” presidential spokesperson Khusela Diko said. This followed the revelation on social media that the...

How Jihadi Groups in Africa Will Exploit COVID-19

As the COVID-19 outbreak begins to spread in earnest in Africa, we can expect so-called jihadi groups on the continent to try to take advantage of the crisis to unleash violence and recruit members. We are already seeing indications that this has started happening. Governments, development workers, and aid agencies need to be made aware of this threat and take steps to deny these brutal militias more room to operate. Over the past two weeks,...

French Doctor Apologizes for Comments on Testing a COVID-19 Vaccine in Africa, Prompting Outrage on Social Media

‘Shouldn’t we be doing this study in Africa where there are no masks, no treatment, no intensive care, a little bit like we did in certain AIDS studies or with prostitutes?’ Dr. Jean-Paul Mira said. A French doctor apologized after suggesting that Africa should become a testing ground for a COVID-19 vaccine, remarks that sparked public outcry on social media. Jean-Paul Mira, head of the intensive care unit at the Cochin Hospital in Paris, made...

Lockdowns: Saving lives, but ruining livelihoods in Africa

LAGOS/JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – In a dark ground-floor room in Lagos, dressmaker Kemi Adepoju gazes at a pile of dresses she has made but which cannot be collected due to the lockdown in force to slow the spread of the new coronavirus. “This lockdown came upon us suddenly. I used all my money to buy fabric. If I had known, I would have … used it to buy food instead,” said the mother-of-two, who runs her...

UPDATE: Confirmed COVID-19 Cases Surpass 10,000 in Africa – Africa CDC

The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases reached 10,075 in Africa and the death toll reached 487, the Africa Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) revealed on Tuesday. The Africa CDC, a specialised agency of the 55-member African Union (AU), in its latest situation update issued in Addis Ababa also disclosed that the confirmed COVID-19 cases were spread across 52 countries. The Africa CDC stated that some 913 people, who have been infected with...

Libya Reports 1st COVID-19 Recovery Case

The National Centre for Disease Control of Libya’s UN-backed government has announced the first COVID-19 recovery case in the country. “We officially announce the recovery of the first case of the new coronavirus after two samples tested negative at the laboratory,’’ Badr Addin Al-Najjar, Director of the centre, told a press conference. “Social separation and commitment to home quarantine are the first steps in reducing the spread of the virus,’’ he added. When asked about...

Rwandan Officials Forfeit April Salary Amid COVID-19

Rwandan cabinet members and other senior government officials have resolved to forfeit their April salary to show solidarity with their fellow Rwandans under COVID-19 lockdown in the country, the Prime Minister’s Office said Sunday. A statement from the office also commended all Rwandans for their continued support and adherence to government measures against the spread of COVID-19. The Rwandan Ministry of Health, earlier in the day, reported two new COVID-19 cases, bringing the country’s total...

UPDATE: COVID-19: Africa Death Toll Hits 383, As Cases Rise to 8,596 – WHO

The World Health Organisation (WHO) Regional Office for Africa in Brazzaville, Congo, says there are now 8, 596 confirmed cases of COVID-19 on the African continent with 383 deaths. The UN’s health agency gave the update on its official twitter account @WHOAFRO. “Africa now has a total of 8,596 confirmed cases, 383 deaths and 792 recovered from 51 Countries. “Number of cases continue to rise on the African continent with 8,377 cumulative cases reported. “Algeria...

Study Finds About 20 Million Jobs in Africa at Risk From Impact of Coronavirus Pandemic

About 20 million jobs are at risk in Africa as the continent’s economies are projected to shrink this year due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, according to an African Union (AU) study. So far, Africa accounts for just a fraction of total cases of the disease which has infected more than one million people worldwide, according to a Reuters tally. But African economies are already facing an impending global economic downturn, plummeting oil and commodity prices and...

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