The trajectory of Covid cases in Africa is "
very, very worrying
", estimated Friday, June 18, the person in charge of emergency situations at the WHO, Doctor Michael Ryan, with the spread of more contagious variants and a vaccination rate dangerously low.
Read also: Where is vaccination in Africa?
According to data collected by the WHO, there were 116,500 new infections in Africa during the week ended June 13, 25,500 more than the previous week.
Dr Ryan pointed out that seen as a whole the continent did not look so badly off, accounting for just over 5% of new cases recorded worldwide last week and 2.2% of deaths.
But in some countries infections have doubled and they are on the rise by more than 50% in others.
The third wave of Covid-19 cases "is
amplifying and accelerating
" in Africa with the variants, had already alerted Thursday the office of the World Health Organization (WHO) on the continent, calling for an increase in vaccine supply.
1% of vaccinated
Like Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Director for Africa, Dr Ryan stressed that the continent is much more vulnerable because it has received so few anti-Covid vaccines, when Europe or the United States United have high immunization rates that allow them to return to a more normal life with a dramatic drop in infections and deaths.
“
The stark reality is that in an area with multiple variants that are more contagious and potentially have a stronger impact, we have left large parts of the population and vulnerable populations in Africa deprived of vaccine protection, while health systems are already fragile,
”said Dr Ryan. "
This is the result of an unfair distribution of vaccines,
" he insisted. This is particularly true for Africa where only 1% of the population is fully immunized.
Africa had so far been hit less hard by the pandemic than other regions but that does not mean that this will remain the case. “
It is totally premature to think that the next wave in Africa will be just a short rain and not a storm,
” the doctor said. And to add: "
I think we have to take what is happening in Africa very, very seriously
".