[ad_1]
The total number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Africa was 2,448,266 as of Dec. 18, according to data from the World Health Organization (WHO).
South Africa remains the most affected country in terms of infections with 892,813 and local authorities are already trying to contain a second wave of the pandemic. Health Minister Dr. Zweli Mkhize said on Friday that a new variant of COVID-19 was found in the country and that the government believed it was driving the second wave.
The second most affected country is Morocco (409,746) followed by Egypt (123,701), Ethiopia (118,481) and Tunisia (115,966). Algeria and Kenya have reported more than 93,000 cases.
The continent has also reported 57,776 deaths with South Africa having 24,011 deaths, accounting for 41 percent of the continent’s total. It is followed by Egypt with 7,015, then Morocco with 6,804, Tunisia with 4,032 and Algeria with 2,640. Ethiopia (1,831), Kenya (1,618), Sudan (1,408), Libya (1,337) and Nigeria (1,201) are the other countries that have reported more than 1,000 deaths.
On Thursday, the WHO warned that the continent was still unclear regarding the coronavirus pandemic and that the threat of the virus spreading remained very real.
Authorities in countries experiencing a resurgence in the number of infections have blamed the increase in cases on complacency and the flagrant violation of existing health protocols.
Furthermore, despite the threat of a second wave of the pandemic, governments have generally relaxed restrictions designed to contain the spread of the virus.
However, some countries such as Kenya, Namibia and South Africa responded to the increase in cases by announcing new restrictions to address the spread of COVID-19.
(With input from the World Health Organization)
