The African continent analysts predicted would be the worst hit by the Corona Virus pandemic because of the state of its healthcare system. But it’s been five months since the disease broke out December 2019, in Wuham, China, yet the continent has recorded the least number of fatalities among all the regions of the world so far.

In healthcare delivery system, Africa could be said to be a lame duck compared to other regions of the world. But it has never been faint-hearted but in courageously tackling and confronting its challenges despite its generally poor state of health infrastructure. Twice, the continent has defied all odds and doomsday predictions and scare-mongering of massive deaths. First, was with Ebola and second is the rampaging Corona Virus otherwise known as COVID-19.

This has left the world in awe but appreciative that a continent that doesn’t have money to throw at combating diseases of this magnitude, is yet able to surmount and record huge success in its containment. Apparently impressed, the Secretary General of the United Nations was full of commendation for the continent not because it broke new scientific grounds but for its ability to manage the pandemic and reduce the number of fatalities. He, Antonio Guterres was full of commendation for African countries and the African Union for acting quickly to enforce quarantines and border closures and to rely on regional cooperation to try to stop the spread of the virus. He spoke at a Security Council meeting on Tuesday, May 19, 2020.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) which was in panic for Africa believing that the continent may not be able to make the high grade at combating the outbreak of Corona Virus has since returned with salutations. Several health experts didn’t give Africa any chance. Melinda Gates, co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation predicted it was going to be horrible in the developing world. Specifically, she was quoted to have said the coronavirus pandemic will make Africa have dead bodies lying on the streets.

Her words: “Covid-19 will be horrible in the developing world, she said. My heart is in Africa. I am worried. The only reason why the reported cases of the coronavirus disease in Africa is low now is most likely because there have not been wide testing of people. The disease is going to bite hard on the continent. I see dead bodies in the streets of Africa, Melinda said.
Even the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) had in April predicted: “anywhere between 300,000 and 3.3 million African people could lose their lives as a direct result of COVID-19.”

But all the pundits and their predictions have been proven wrong. The Africa Center for Disease Control and Prevention says COVID-19 has killed more than 2,800 people. The largest numbers of confirmed cases in Africa are in South Africa, Egypt, Algeria, Morocco and Nigeria. In Nigeria the number of Corona Virus cases stood at 6,401, 1734 discharged and 192 deaths as at Wednesday May 20.

For other African countries, the situation is not too scary too. South Africa is the worst hit with 14,355 cases and 261 deaths, followed by Algeria with 6,821 and 542 deaths. Ghana has 5,735 cases and 29 deaths; Cameroon, 3,047 cases and 139 deaths; and Guinea with 2,658 cases and 16 deaths. The good news is that “most people with COVID-19 recover fully after treatment” according to information on the Twitter account of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC)

But the African situation is only a child’s play when compared to other regions. The latest WHO figures show the Americas with the highest numbers of cases (1,966,932) and deaths (118,799). This is closely followed by Europe with 1,874,075 cases and 166,121 deaths; Eastern Mediterranean with 326,568 cases 9,841 deaths; Western Pacific with 167,546 cases and 6,730 deaths; and South-East Asia with 134,531 cases and 4,351 deaths.

The most impacted countries worldwide as of May 17, 2020 showed the USA topping the chart with 1,486,757 cases and over 90,000 deaths; Russia, 281,752 cases and 2,631 deaths; UK, 244,995 cases and 34,716 deaths; Brazil, 241,080 cases and 16,122 deaths; Spain, 230,698 cases and 27,563 deaths; Italy, 225,435 cases and 31,908; France, 179,693 and 28,111 deaths; Germany, 176,369 cases and 7,962 deaths; Turkey, 149,435 cases and 4,140 deaths; and Iran, 120,198cases and 6,988 deaths.

The task at hand now is the development of vaccine and treatment drugs for this dreaded Corona Virus. There has ensued a rat race among countries of the world for who will bell the cat and strike gold. In the African unique way, there have been a few herbal concoctions and inventions capable of curing the disease but it is a tall dream for such remedies to be acceptable to a discriminatory world that does not believe anything good can come out of Africa. The cure from tiny Madagascar has been derided as ineffective for the disease. There are other suggestions of herbal remedy that may be going through scientific analysis. With time, there could be an African-grown solution.

The issue now is how Africa would recover from the disruptions created by the Corona Virus, post-COVID. Adopting the western world strategies of locking down its citizens and economy have inflicted a lot of damage of African countries that may take years to recover. The Nigerian situation is further compounded by the downslide in the price of oil in international market. (Even, the strongest of world’s economy, United States has forcefully reopened for business). Nigeria has already approached the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to bridge its revenue shortfalls and be able to finance its budget for 2020.

In the words of the United Nations Secretary General “The pandemic threatens African progress. It will aggravate long-standing inequalities and heighten hunger, malnutrition and vulnerability to disease. Already, demand for Africa’s commodities, tourism and remittances are declining. The opening of the trade zone has been pushed back – and millions could be pushed into extreme poverty,” Antonio Guterres said.

In additional to urging international efforts to support education and protect jobs, Guterres also called for African countries to have “equal and affordable access to any eventual vaccine and treatment.” That was also part of the resolutions reached at the World Health Assembly in Geneva on Monday.