Like the rest of the world caught up in the pandemic, Africa waits impatiently for a vaccine.

Baffling the experts, Africa has had comparatively low numbers of infections.

These infections are starting to increase, but thus far Africa accounts for just over two million of the more than 60 million cases worldwide.

Medical experts say there has been an increase in Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria as the winter weather closes in.

South Africa, with more than 502000 infections and over 21 000 deaths tops the continental COVID list.

These experts fear it will later next year and perhaps even 2022 before Africa sees widespread distribution of vaccines.

It is unlikely, they say, that the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, which are currently the frontrunners in the northern hemisphere, will be distributed in Africa.

Cost is not the chief obstacle.

According to the International Vaccine Access Centre at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health,  the storage and transportation of the vaccine are the chief obstacles.

The Pfizer vaccine has to be kept at minus 80 degrees.

Distributing it requires special refrigerated storage facilities and refrigerated aircraft and vehicles to move it around.

Africa requires a more hardy medication that does not require such expensive care.

There is also a question of safety.

Fourteen years ago Pfizer had to pay compensation to the 11 families in Nigeria’s Kano state who lost children in tests on the anti meningitis vaccine Travan.

African nations responded angrily early in the pandemic to French doctors suggesting Africans would be good subjects for testing a COVID vaccine.

The movement calling itself Africans Are Not Lab Rats has silenced similar suggestions.

However it is undeniable that if a vaccine is be effective in Africa, it needs to be tested here..

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They are all small, relatively remote and have tests rates either extremely low or not all.

South Africa continues to top the continental table of COVID 19 infections.

Its1462 cases recorded this morning are far and away ahead of second place Algeria which has 986 cases.

Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia follow that.

The African countries that have not recorded COVID19 cases are Comoros, Lesotho, Sao Tome and Principe, South Sudan  and Western Sahara.

All of these fall into the World Health Organisation’s remote category mentioned when it confirmed that the global infections exceed one million.

The total number of African deaths from COVID 19 is currently 290.

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The women, who are also making surgical kits, say they miss their families but the camaraderie provides some comfort

The factory normally makes protective equipment for export.

Its entire output of masks, gloves, surgical suits and caps is now being  directed to Tunisian doctors, nurses and hospitals dealing with COVID19.

Tunisia has already had six deaths  from the 227 confirmed cases of coronavirus.

The North Africa country has been in lockdown since Sunday.

Neighbouring Algeria has 409 confirmed cases of COVID 19 which has killed 26 people.

US citizens are there being airlifted out tomorrow in a special charter flight.

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The East African country has 19 patients infected with the coronavirus.

The decision to release the prisoners was taken by the national task force to tackle COVID 19 which is lead by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.

The premier has launched a nationwide fund raising drive to fight the spread of the the virus and prepare the nation to deal with a worst case scenario.

Ethiopia, along with Nigeria, Algeria, Egypt and South Africa have been named by the World Health Organization as the African countries that will probably be worst hit by COVID 19 because of the number of people passing through them.

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The virus was detected in a Ivorean who returned from visiting Italy.

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There are now a dozen African countries treating COVID19 cases.

Egypt has the highest count followed by Algeria. 

The Democratic Republic of Congo has replaced South Africa in third place.

Two of the 114 cases in Africa have resulted in deaths.

Governments have taken stringent action to stop infection.

Kenya’s banned its star athletes from going abroad to compete for the next month.

Ghana and Gabon has stopped foreign travel for their  officials. Lesotho has stopped foreign travel for its citizens.

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They agreed on the need for a political settlement and ending military action and foreign interference.

Libyan Government of National Accord head Fayez Al Sarraj came to see President Cyril Ramaphosa in his capacity as chairman of the African Union to discuss political and security developments in his Maghreb state.

They’ll meet again in Brazzaville on Thursday when President Denis Sassou Nguesso chairs the AU High Level Committee on Libya.

The heads of state of  Egypt, Chad and Algeria will also be there.

Since the 2011 killing dictator Muammar Gadaffi, Libya’s disintegration  has been a particular headache for the AU 

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With close to 100 cases reported, COVID 19 is gaining a foothold on the continent that has thus far been lightest hit by the virus.

Burkina Faso’s Health Minister Claudine Lougue says the two cases of coronavirus in her country come from a woman who recently visited France.

Her husband is also infected. They are quarantines in a Ouagadougou hospital. A person who has been in close contact with her is under observation.

South Africa’s seven cases put its third on the continental list behind Egypt, which has 54 cases and Algeria with 19. Cameroon, Senegal, Togo and Nigeria have also reported cases.

Worldwide COVID 19 cases increased by 3994 yesterday, bringing the total to 109 578.

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The World Health Organization is looking to help Africa to prepare for and respond to the storm.

South Africa, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Algeria and Egypt are identified as the African countries with the highest risk importing COVID19.

As China insists its winning the battle to contain coronavirus, markets are reacting to the  spread of 77 000 cases to 30 countries.

Any complacency has been swept aside by the substantial increase of cases in Iran, South Korea and `italy

The Down Jones industrial index plunged more than1000 points – its biggest fall in two years.

The FTSE index suffered its worst fall in three years.

Shares in Apple, Disney and Nike all fell indicating how much is made in China and how important it is.

Airline stocks fell reflecting the mass cancellation  of travel to avoid the virus.

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He was speaking on the eve of an African summit in Brazzaville on its oil-rich Mediterranean member.

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Emmanuel Macron says Turkish warships carrying Syrian mercenaries have been seen entering Libyan waters.

The French President calls this a clear violation of the Berlin agreement on Libya signed earlier this month urging non-interference in the country that has been as war since 2011.

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has not responded to the French charge.

He has deployed military advisors in Tripoli as part of his support for the Government of National Accord.

In Algeria earlier this week he accused rebel leader Khalifa Haftar of breaking the Berlin Accord

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But it has not produced a winner to succeed the late President Bejii Caid Essebsi.

Voters will be back for  run-off by early November.

Tunisia has retained its status as a democratic model in a troubled part of the world.

Both headed for elections, Tunisia’s larger neighbours Algeria and Libya  would like to have some of that orderliness rub off.

Much depends on whether the final winner – which looks like a contest between television mogul Nabil Karoui and law professor Kaïs Saïed – is able to get to grips with the economic stagnation and unemployment that are preventing Tunisians from enjoying the fruits of their hard-won democracy.

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