The rapid rise in cases in Africa is shocking. As the World Health Organization announced today, Tuesday, the vast continent is facing the fastest increase in Covid-19 cases this year, with their number having increased by 83% in the last week, although deaths remain low.
The increase in cases is due to the Delta and Omicron variants, the WHO points out in its announcement. The number of new Covid-19 infections on the continent is currently doubling every five days, the shortest time frame reported this year.
Low vaccination rates in Africa are encouraging viral mutations, such as the new Omicron variant, to spread, according to health experts. The continent has struggled to obtain vaccines until recently and is facing challenges in their distribution, including a lack of resources, personnel and equipment.
As of yesterday, only 20 African countries had vaccinated at least 10% of their population, according to the World Health Organization. Some countries, such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Chad, have vaccinated less than 1%, according to data compiled by Reuters.
“We are cautiously optimistic that deaths and serious illness will remain low in the current wave, but the slow pace of the vaccination campaign in Africa means that both of these indicators will rise much more than they should,” she said. Macidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa.
Africa recorded more than 196,000 new cases in the week ended December 12, up from about 107,000 last week, according to the World Health Organization.
Deaths fell 19 percent over the same period, he says, to an average of about 1,000 a week in the fourth pandemic.
At the current rate, Africa will need by May 2022 to reach 40% of vaccination coverage and by August 2024 to reach 70%, according to the World Health Organization.
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