Africa is the continent that seems to have been spared the longest from the new coronavirus, but now the infections seem to be increasing there as well.
About 640 infections have now been counted, compared to 147 a week ago. “If the coronavirus penetrates deeply here, it is a medical and a human catastrophe,” said humanitarian physician Réginald Moreels.
Africa must be vigilant for the coronavirus and prepare for the worst. That says the World Health Organization (WHO). “The continent must learn from the way the virus is spreading elsewhere. Africa must wake up, my continent must wake up,” said director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. The Ethiopian is the first African head of the WHO.
The number of confirmed infections in Africa is currently relatively low at around 640, compared to other continents.
To date, 16 deaths have been reported (6 in Egypt, 6 in Algeria, 2 in Morocco, 1 in Sudan and 1 in Burkina Faso). But those low numbers are no reason not to prepare, says the WHO. The number of infections is also increasing sharply compared to a week ago.
Réginald Moreels, who works as a humanitarian surgeon for long periods in Beni, Eastern Congo, shares the concern. “If the coronavirus and its associated Covid-19 penetrates to Africa, it could turn into a catastrophe,” he says in “The Morning on Radio 1.” It seems so contradictory.
There is good news because if there are no more infections with the Ebola virus in Eastern Congo on April 12, we can say that the epidemic, which started almost two years ago, is officially over. But now we are facing a possible corona epidemic. “
