The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak continues to rapidly evolve on the African continent. Since our last situation report on 25 March 2020 (External Situation Report 4), four new countries in the WHO African Region, including Botswana, Burundi, Guinea Bissau and Sierra Leonne have reported confirmed COVID-19 cases. Forty-two (89%) out of 47 Member States of the WHO African Region are now affected.
The number of cases and deaths has more than doubled since our last report, with 2 050 new confirmed COVID-19 cases and 65 new deaths reported in the WHO African Region. As of 1 April 2020, a cumulative total of 3 766 confirmed COVID-19 cases with 95 deaths (case fatality ratio 2.5%) have been reported across the 42 affected countries in the region.
Figure 1 shows the temporal distribution of cases by country. The most affected countries in the WHO African Region are: South Africa (1 353 cases), Algeria (584 cases), Burkina Faso (261 cases), Senegal (175 cases), Cote d’Ivoire (169 cases) and Ghana (152). Together, these countries account for 72% of the cases reported in the region. Figures 2 and 3 show the temporal and geographical distribution of cases in the six most affected countries.
Information on sex and age is currently available for 523 and 513 cases, respectively. The male to female ratio among the confirmed cases is 1.5, and the median age is 41 years old (range: 0 – 88). The distribution of cases according to age and sex is presented in figure 4; overall, older males continue to be disproportionately affected by this outbreak.
