WHO Fears Up to 190,000 Could Die in Africa If Covid-19 Containment Fails

The World Health Organization has said up to 190,000 people in Africa could die from Coronavirus in the first year of the pandemic if containment measures fail.

The UN health agency made this projection based on a new study by its regional office in Brazzaville .

The study, AFP reports, was based on prediction modelling, covers 47 countries with a total population of one billion.

“The model predicts the observed slower rate of transmission, lower age of people with severe disease and lower mortality rates compared to what is seen in the most affected countries in the rest of the world,” the statement said.

“The lower rate of transmission, however, suggests a more prolonged outbreak over a few years.”

WHO Africa Director Matshidiso Moeti said that “while COVID-19 likely won’t spread as exponentially in Africa as it has elsewhere in the world, it likely will smoulder in transmission hotspots”.

“COVID-19 could become a fixture in our lives for the next several years unless a proactive approach is taken by many governments in the region,” he added.

“We need to test, trace, isolate and treat.”

The agency however said countries like Algeria, South Africa and Cameroon were at high risk unless effective containment measures were implemented.

According to the AFP, Africa has so far recorded 53,334 cases and 2,065 fatalities out of a global death toll of nearly 267,000.

Experts have consistently warned that Africa is particularly vulnerable to an outbreak, due to weak health infrastructure, high rates of poverty, numerous roiling conflicts and a proven susceptibility to previous epidemics.

Several countries have put confinement measures or lockdowns in place, but others have not. Some, like Nigeria, have lifted the lockdown restriction.

Meanwhile South Africa has also started to ease its lockdown.