AFRICA

Paris, France | AFP | The lack of available tests for COVID-19 means the world is effectively fighting the pandemic blind and may not know the true extent of infection for months if not years, experts said Thursday. Because COVID-19 is so infectious — roughly 2.5 times that of the common …

Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | A legal complaint against Burundi was filed with a UN rights body on Thursday, over punitive actions taken against lawyers and activists who cooperated with a UN review of the country’s rights record. The International Service for Human Rights (ISHR) filed a complaint with the United Nations Committee against Torture …

Kampala, Uganda | Julius Businge | The Lusaka based COMESA Competition Commission (CCC) on March 17th issued a warning to companies and individuals that are selling products which are not medically tested and approved which they claim can treat or prevent the world pandemic, coronavirus. Signed by George K. Lipimile, the director and …

Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso | AFP |  Sub-Saharan Africa on Wednesday recorded its first COVID-19 death, a high-ranking politician in Burkina Faso, as the head of the World Health Organisation urged the continent to “prepare for the worst”. “Africa should wake up,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a news conference in Geneva, pointing out …

Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | The head of the World Health Organization said Wednesday that while Africa so far had seen few cases of COVID-19, the continent should “prepare for the worst”. “Africa should wake up,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told journalists in a virtual news conference. Tedros said that to date, 233 cases of the …

Bunia, DR Congo | AFP |  With three fingers chopped off his left hand, Father Guy-Robert Mandro bears physical witness to a resurgence of violence in DR Congo that has gone widely unnoticed in a world fixated by the coronavirus pandemic. Since the start of the month, around 50 people have …

Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | South Africa’s central bank has warned citizens against scammers visiting homes to “recall” banknotes and coins they said were contaminated with the novel coronavirus. The criminals carried fake identification badges and provided false receipts to victims, who were told they could exchange the slips for “clean” cash at any …

New York, US | THE INDEPENDENT |  Days after Mike Bloomberg launched a program to help American mayors improve their coronavirus response, Bloomberg Philanthropies today announced a new $40 million global initiative to combat the pandemic on a global scale. “Last week, we launched an effort to help US mayors …

Dar es Salaam, Tanzania | AFP |  Tanzania and Somalia on Monday became the latest East Africa countries to confirm their first cases of coronavirus, as neighbouring countries shuttered borders and schools as fears of contagion rose. As the global pandemic takes root in Africa, Chinese billionaire Jack Ma announced he …

Tunis, Tunisia | AFP | There is no known cure for the new coronavirus, but in the medicinal herbs souq in Tunis, anxious Tunisians are consulting with herbalists and stocking up on traditional remedies. “I am afraid for my father, who is old and sick, so I have come here …