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April 15, 2022

Andrew Campbell 

The World Health Organization (WHO) announced on April 14 that COVID-19 cases in Africa had reduced for the past 16 weeks, and deaths have dropped for the last eight, marking the continent's longest-running decline in infections since the pandemic began.

According to WHO, this low level of infection hasn't been recorded since April 2020. Between August 1 and October 10 of 2021, the previous longest decline occurred. Infections have dropped from more than 308,000 cases per week at the beginning of the year to less than 20,000 in the week ending April 10. Over the preceding week, about 18,000 cases and 239 deaths were reported, showing respective decreases of 29% and 37% when compared to the previous week.

Despite the decline in infections, governments must remain vigilant and maintain surveillance measures, such as genomic surveillance to detect circulating COVID-19 variants quickly, enhance testing, and scale up vaccination. Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa, warned during a virtual press conference that while the virus is still circulating, there is a risk of new and potentially more deadly variants evolving, and pandemic control measures are vital for effective response to an outbreak. Meanwhile, there is a high possibility of another surge of new illnesses in the southern hemisphere as the cold season approaches in June and August.