PAR – more than 80 thousand. COVID-19 cases, but tragic predictions for Africa have not materialized



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According to Thursday, more than 57 million. More than 80 thousand people have been identified in the population with PAR. infections, 1,674 deaths associated with COVID-19. There are 1,356 cases per million inhabitants, compared to 86 confirmed cases per million inhabitants in the most populous African countries such as Nigeria and 33 in Ethiopia.

The number of most infected people in the south began to increase as of June 9, the day after schools reopened.

AFP / Scanpix Photo / School in South Africa during a pandemic

AFP / Scanpix Photo / School in South Africa during a pandemic

At least 20 schools in the Western Cape were reported to close after Wednesday after 98 teachers became infected with the coronavirus. Around 1.8 thousand people were also infected here. students

In the media, the increase in cases is related to the resumption of work in educational institutions, but the Minister of Education, Debbie Schafer, has denied it. “1,537 of these cases were recorded before schools opened,” he said.

Despite a significant increase in cases, PARs are preparing to ease quarantine restrictions. President Cyril Ramaphosa has announced that people will be able to sit down to dinner at restaurants, barber shops, casinos and movie theaters again, according to the BBC.

Non-contact sports such as golf and tennis will also be allowed. True, Ramaphosa did not specify an exact date to ease the restrictions, and said he would announce it later.

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The tragic scenario did not materialize

With increased imports into African countries and the spread of the virus in society, the World Health Organization (WHO) has begun to raise concerns about the COVID-19 crisis on the continent. Representatives of the organization assured that a weak health care system could be quickly overcrowded, writes CNN.

Bill Gates’ wife, philanthropist Melinda Gates, told a station in April that the crisis in Africa could be so rampant that the bodies of those infected would be seen only on the streets.

However, five months after the pandemic began, catastrophic scenarios in Africa did not materialize.

Ethiopian doctor John Nkengasong told CNN that one reason for this may be that many African leaders took the right steps at the start of the pandemic, acting in a coordinated manner. One of those steps is the closing of the economies.

Health experts say the slow spread of the virus may have been driven by the long experience of African countries in fighting diseases like the Ebola virus and yellow fever.

WHO spokesperson for Africa, Humphrey Karamagi, and a group of researchers believe that socio-ecological factors may have played a larger role.

One of them is a relatively light movement on the continent. Due to the lack of road networks and the fact that in some regions people live mainly in rural areas, there was less chance of the virus spreading.

According to the researchers, the virus may have spread slowly due to factors such as weather and precipitation, writes CNN.

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Health experts point out that the composition of the population is an advantage in terms of slow spread of the virus. More than 70 percent. The population of sub-Saharan Africa is under 30 years old, and on other continents, COVID-19 has affected the elderly more.

According to Karamagi, a lower incidence of diabetes, hypertension and less obesity in the African population should also lead to lower infection rates.



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