Coronavirus

Seven African countries will begin administering coronavirus antibody tests next week, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention has said. The testing is part of an effort to understand how widespread the infection is on the continent. "Liberia, Sierra Leone,...

A community in a newly formed informal settlement near the South African city of Cape Town has given the pandemic a new twist and named their area Covid-19.

Senegal has allowed students sitting for national exams back to school but under strict guidelines that include hand-washing, keeping social distance, temperature checks and wearing face masks. It’s taken weeks of preparation for schools to reopen, including cleaning and disinfecting...

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has disbursed US$10 billion to 27 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, spokesman Gerry Rice said at a press briefing in Washington DC on Thursday. That unprecedented amount is 10 times...

Ghana’s President Nana Akufo-Addo has announced measures to ease restrictions on public gatherings in the country. Under the new directives, church services and Muslim prayers can take place with 100 congregants at a time and for only one hour. Social distancing...

The African Union (AU) said it is to raise one million U.S. dollars on Monday for its COVID-19 response fund, as the 55-member pan-African bloc marks the Africa Day. The African Union has created an African Union COVID-19 Response...

South Sudan's Vice-President Riek Machar has tested positive for coronavirus. His wife, Defence Minister Angelina Teny, some bodyguards and other staff have also tested positive for the virus. Mr Machar was tested on 13 May after one of the members of...

A Christian television channel founded by a Lagos-based veteran pastor has been sanctioned by Ofcom, the broadcasting authority in London for airing “potentially harmful statements” about the Covid-19 pandemic, including a baseless conspiracy that the virus is linked to...

Madagascar has recorded its first coronavirus death, according to an official announcement made on television. The 57-year-old hospital worker, who died on Saturday, was suffering from diabetes and high blood pressure, Reuters news agency reports quoting the statement. The Indian ocean...

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has said that 950 children in Nigeria could die daily from preventable causes over the next six months as the coronavirus pandemic threatens to weaken the health system. UNICEF added that Nigeria could record...