(3minutes read)
· For the western Africa, the incidence of COCID-19 is a double
whammy. The region has yet to come out of the aftershocks of Ebola
· It is instructive to see the impact of the COVID-19 in the
region as per the latest data (April 2) compiled from the release of
John Hopkins University: while Burkina Faso tops the list with 282
cases, closely followed by Ghana (195) Ivory Cost (190) and Nigeria
(174), the region does not have a single country, which is not
affected by the virus
For the western Africa, the incidence of COCID-19 is a double whammy.
The region has yet to come out of the aftershocks of Ebola. The
average cost of the region because of Ebola was estimated as high as
US $53 billion. In addition to this, the region faced additional
burdens like rising fiscal deficits, reduced agricultural production,
increased unemployment, and drastic declines in investment and
tourism. If one adds these costs, which are mostly intangible, it
would work out to quite a tidy sum.
It is instructive to see the impact of the COVID-19 in the region as
per the latest data (April 2) compiled from the release of John
Hopkins University: while Burkina Faso tops the list with 282 cases,
closely followed by Ghana (195) Ivory Coast (190) and Nigeria (174),
the region does not have a single country, which is not affected by
the virus. The preparedness of the region varies from country to
country.
One unique feature of the region is that barring perhaps Nigeria, the
rest of the countries cannot claim basic healthcare infrastructure. It
is time the governments in the region enhance their preparedness by
seeking external help both in kind and monetary terms, at least to
help relieve the miseries being suffered by the people in terms of
essential goods like food, medicines, fuel etc.
A look at the current scenario of Covid-19 spread in the region as on
April 2,2020:
West Africa
Benin – 13
Burkina Faso – 282
Cape Verde – 6
The Gambia – 4
Ghana – 195
Guinea – 30
Guinea-Bissau – 9
Ivory Coast – 190
Liberia – 6
Mauritania – 6
Mali – 31
Nigeria- 174
Niger – 74
Senegal – 190
Sierra Leone – 2
Togo – 36
