MOSCOW, April 21. /TASS/. The coronavirus spread is causing serious concern in African countries because it can have unpredictable consequences on the continent, a Russian Foreign Ministry official told TASS on Tuesday.
Coronavirus spread rates are relatively low in African countries, with the exception of Algeria, Egypt, Morocco and South Africa. "However, this issue is causing serious concern in many countries on the continent," the official said. "Social and economic situation in many of these countries is complicated, while high population density, poor healthcare system, various crises and conflicts, transparent borders and uncontrolled migration can lead to a sharp rise in cases and unpredictable fallout," the official added.
According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, the pandemic may negatively affect African countries’ ability to carry out major tasks to overcome poverty, ensure sustainable development and implement integration projects.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Africa’s coronavirus cases have reached 21,633, the death toll currently stands at 1,076.
Coronavirus pandemic
In late December 2019, Chinese officials notified the World Health Organization about the outbreak of a previously unknown pneumonia in the city of Wuhan, in central China. Since then, cases of the novel coronavirus — named COVID-19 by the WHO — have been reported in every corner of the globe, including Russia.
On March 11, 2020, the WHO declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic. According to the latest statistics, over 2,484,000 people have been infected worldwide and more than 170,000 deaths have been reported. In addition, so far, over 652,000 individuals have recovered from the illness across the globe.