COVID-19: A Global Health Crisis

The COVID-19 outbreak, first identified in Wuhan, China, emerged as a cluster of patients with fever and respiratory symptoms on December 31, 2019. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared it a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) on January 31, 2020, and later labeled it a pandemic on March 11, 2020.

By that date, the virus had spread to 116 countries. As of February 6, 2023, there have been over 754 million confirmed COVID-19 cases worldwide, resulting in more than 6.8 million deaths.

Africa’s Response to COVID-19

Africa’s growing economic ties with China, alongside increasing travel between the two regions, heightened concerns about the potential spread of COVID-19 to the continent. In recent years, millions of Chinese nationals have been working across Africa, while many Africans have frequently traveled to China for business, education, and leisure. Before the outbreak, there were eight daily flights between Chinese and African cities.

In early 2020, African health authorities recognized the risk posed by these connections. Thirteen African nations with strong ties to China, including Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), were identified as high-risk areas for COVID-19 spread.

SACIDS Foundation’s Role in Containing COVID-19 in Africa

The SACIDS Foundation for One Health, headquartered at Sokoine University of Agriculture in Tanzania, played a pivotal role in providing technical expertise to African nations in the fight against COVID-19. Focus areas included strengthening surveillance at ports of entry, monitoring high-risk communities, and promoting self-reporting measures. The foundation’s efforts emphasized the importance of addressing outbreaks at their source to safeguard public health at local, national, regional, and global levels.

Supported by grants from the Skoll Foundation, SACIDS collaborated with the East African Integrated Disease Surveillance Network (EAIDSNet) and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) to implement the “African Continental Strategic Plan for COVID-19 Pandemic.” The initiative focused on evidence-based practices for surveillance, prevention, diagnosis, case management, and control.

Priority actions included improving screening processes at points of entry, enhancing existing surveillance systems for respiratory illnesses, tracing contacts, managing case data effectively, and debunking misinformation. These measures were instrumental in Africa’s ongoing efforts to contain the pandemic and protect public health.

To understand more deeply what these organizations are doing to change the epidemic landscape – look no further. We have the answers for you.

RELATED LINKS

• Enhancing community-based disease surveillance using Afyadata in Mozambique

• COVID-19 training for community health workers in Africa

• COVID-19 and Africa’s volatile changing epidemics landscape

• Capacity strengthening on health surveillance at the Points of Entry in Tanzania (AfyaMsafiri)