WHO African Region Chief Says Continent's Second COVID-19 Wave Tops Previous Peak

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 14th January, 2021) Africa's second COVID-19 wave has already exceeded the peak of last summer's first wave, as the continent has registered, on average, more than 25,000 new cases daily over the past two weeks, Matshidiso Moeti, the World Health Organization's (WHO) regional director for Africa, said on Thursday.

"With an average daily new case count of more than 25,000 in the last 14 days, Africa is experiencing a second wave, which is higher than the peak experienced last July. We know that these numbers are likely to grow as the impact of holiday season travel and get-togethers becomes evident," Moeti told a WHO Africa Region press briefing.

According to the WHO official, more than 3 million positive tests for COVID-19 have been registered in Africa since the start of the pandemic, resulting in the deaths of 22,000 people.

"This is a stark reminder that the virus is relentless," Moeti added.

African countries should step up their efforts to conduct genome sequencing of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19, given the emergence of new variants of the disease in South Africa and Nigeria, Moeti stated.

South Africa has the continent's highest case total as 1.25 million positive tests have been reported in the country since the start of the pandemic, according to WHO data.