<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="562" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/472OTSDNRBJA5GOZDMFVS2NF4Q-820x562.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-409687" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/472OTSDNRBJA5GOZDMFVS2NF4Q-820x562.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/472OTSDNRBJA5GOZDMFVS2NF4Q-300x206.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/472OTSDNRBJA5GOZDMFVS2NF4Q-117x80.jpg 117w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/472OTSDNRBJA5GOZDMFVS2NF4Q-768x526.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/472OTSDNRBJA5GOZDMFVS2NF4Q.jpg 960w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption>Funeral workers wearing personal protective equipment carry a casket during the burial of a COVID-19 victim, amid a nationwide coronavirus disease (COVID-19) lockdown, at the Olifantsvlei cemetery, south-west of Joburg, South Africa January 6, 2021. REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko</figcaption></figure>



DAKAR, July 15 (Reuters) &#8211; Africa recorded a 43% rise in COVID-19 deaths this week compared with last week as infections and hospital admissions have jumped and countries face shortages of oxygen and intensive-care beds, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday.



The WHO said Africa&#8217;s case fatality rate &#8211; the proportion of deaths among confirmed cases &#8211; currently stands at 2.6% against the global average of 2.2%.



&#8220;Deaths have climbed steeply for the past five weeks. This is a clear warning sign that hospitals in the most impacted countries are reaching a breaking point,&#8221; Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa, said in a statement.



It said COVID-19 cases on the African continent have risen for eight straight weeks, topping 6 million on 13 July 2021. 



The surge, it said, has been driven by public fatigue with key health measures aimed at curbing the spread, and an increased spread of virus variants.



WHO said Africa has seen the one of the world&#8217;s fastest surge in cases with an additional 1 million over the past month.



&#8220;This is the shortest time it has taken so far to add 1 million cases. Comparatively, it took around three months to move from 4 million to 5 million cases in mid-June,&#8221; the statement said. 



(Reporting by Bate Felix; editing by John Stonestreet and Mark Heinrich)

472OTSDNRBJA5GOZDMFVS2NF4Q

WHO says COVID-19 deaths surge 43% week-on-week in Africa

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="740" height="416" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/106535678-15893952902020-05-13t181808z_1220847718_rc2ung9aocue_rtrmadp_0_health-coronavirus-usa-new-york.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-409421" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/106535678-15893952902020-05-13t181808z_1220847718_rc2ung9aocue_rtrmadp_0_health-coronavirus-usa-new-york.jpeg 740w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/106535678-15893952902020-05-13t181808z_1220847718_rc2ung9aocue_rtrmadp_0_health-coronavirus-usa-new-york-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/106535678-15893952902020-05-13t181808z_1220847718_rc2ung9aocue_rtrmadp_0_health-coronavirus-usa-new-york-140x80.jpeg 140w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 740px) 100vw, 740px" /><figcaption>Shalonda Williams-Hampton, 32, has her blood taken by Northwell Health medical workers for the antibody tests that detect whether a person has developed immunity to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) at the First Baptist Cathedral of Westbury in Westbury, New York, May 13, 2020. Shannon Stapleton | Reuters</figcaption></figure>



“Long COVID” — the name given to ongoing symptoms that millions have reported suffering after a COVID-19 infection — is here to “haunt us for a while yet,” according to a scientist studying the impact of the condition. But there are hopes that a diagnostic test could soon be developed.



The symptoms of long COVID vary but can include ongoing fatigue, shortness of breath, memory loss or problems with concentration (dubbed “brain fog”), insomnia, chest pain or dizziness. However, it remains a poorly understood condition and scientists don’t yet know why some people continue to have some symptoms post-COVID, but others don’t.



<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/24/millions-could-be-suffering-from-long-covid-british-study-suggests.html">Data collected in one British study recently suggested that millions of people could be affected by long COVID following a coronavirus infection</a>. To date, over 187 million cases of COVID have been recorded around the world. Given that number, the potential quantity of people that could be affected by long COVID is significant.



Danny Altmann, professor of Immunology at Imperial College London, told CNBC on Tuesday that “the data (on long COVID) are coming through thick and fast and what it says that, of the 170 million people plus on the planet that have been infected with this virus, that 10%-20% of them will have long-term persistent symptoms.”



“What you see is people that have wheezing or breathlessness and fatigue and brain fog and that long list of about 50 symptoms. So it really is a thing and it’s a thing that is to haunt us for a while yet. It’s a price that we have to pay and we have to look at in terms of people’s lives and jobs and healthcare provision for them,” he told CNBC’s Squawk Box Europe.



Altmann noted that data on long COVID was “very reproducible across the planet whether you look in China or Bangladesh or France or the USA.”



Potential causes of long COVID being considered by scientists include organ damage caused by COVID infection, problems with the immune system following an infection or a reactivation of the virus; or perhaps a combination of factors.



One British study, published last October,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/10/21/long-covid-these-factors-make-it-more-likely-youll-suffer-longterm.html">identified the main factors that make it more likely that patients will suffer long term from the coronavirus</a>, with one’s age, weight and gender among them. But further research is prompting hopes that there could soon be a test to diagnose the little-understood but often life-altering condition.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tests-for-long-covid">Tests for long COVID?</h2>



Imperial College’s Altmann is part of a team investigating long COVID, analyzing blood samples of those who have it in an effort to discover the cause.



Previewing their early findings on the <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m000xwjg/panorama-long-covid-will-i-ever-get-better" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">BBC’s Panorama program</a> Monday evening, the team said they had found that irregular antibodies were common in blood samples of people suffering with long COVID.



Normally, the immune system mounts a protective response by creating antibodies to fight a virus, but sometimes this goes wrong and “autoantibodies” — sometimes described as “rogue antibodies” — are produced that attack healthy cells.



Researchers led by Altmann found that such autoantibodies were common in people with long COVID, although only a small number of blood samples were analyzed in the pilot study. Autoantibodies were not found in comparative blood samples of people who had recovered quickly from the virus or had never tested positive for COVID-19, however.



Still, the finding of such irregular antibodies in those with long COVID could lead the way for a simple diagnostic test in which a person’s blood is analysed. If autoantibodies are found, long COVID could potentially be diagnosed; and this, in turn, could help inform treatment and recovery plans for patients.



<a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-57776010" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Speaking to the BBC</a>, Altmann said the findings cannot yet be described as a breakthrough, but that they were “a very exciting advancement.”



“One of the things we know for absolute certain is that long COVID can ensue from any kind of infection: asymptomatic, mild or severe,” he told Panorama.



“The pilot data that we have says that you really can pick up different patterns of autoimmunity in people who have long COVID,” he said. While more research needs to be done, Altmann said he was optimistic that there could be a simple blood test available that can diagnose long COVID within 6 months.

106535678-15893952902020-05-13t181808z_1220847718_rc2ung9aocue_rtrmadp_0_health-coronavirus-usa-new-york

Long COVID? Soon there could be a test to show if you have it

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="740" height="416" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/106421844-1583240715176gettyimages-1204881407.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-409313" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/106421844-1583240715176gettyimages-1204881407.jpeg 740w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/106421844-1583240715176gettyimages-1204881407-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/106421844-1583240715176gettyimages-1204881407-140x80.jpeg 140w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 740px) 100vw, 740px" /><figcaption>World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus R speaks at a daily briefing in Geneva, Switzerland. Chen Junxia | Xinhua News Agency | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



People who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 are still getting infected with the delta variant, but global health officials said the shots have protected most people from getting severely sick or dying.



“There are reports coming in that vaccinated populations have cases of infection, particularly with the delta variant,” Dr. Soumya Swaminathan, the World Health Organization’s chief scientist, said at a press briefing Monday. “The majority of these are mild or asymptomatic infections.”



However, hospitalizations are rising in some parts of the world, mostly where vaccination rates are low and the highly contagious delta variant is spreading, she said.



In the U.S., officials have said <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/07/08/covid-vaccines-nearly-all-deaths-hospitalizations-among-unvaccinated.html">virtually all recent Covid hospitalizations and deaths</a> were occurring among unvaccinated people. Breakthrough infections are rare, and about 75% of the people who die or are hospitalized with COVID after vaccination are over the age of 65, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.



“The delta variant is ripping around the world at a scorching pace, driving a new spike in cases and death. Not everywhere is taking the same hit, though,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said. “We are in the midst of a growing two-track pandemic where the haves and have-nots within and between countries are increasingly divergent in places with high vaccination coverage.”



The variant is spreading quickly and infecting unprotected and vulnerable people, he said.



Swaminathan warned that vaccinated people can still get COVID and pass it on to others, which is why WHO officials have been urging people to continue wearing masks and practice social distancing. “But certainly it reduces your chances of severe hospitalization and death significantly,” she added.



Some studies <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-021-01316-7" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">have shown</a> that those infected with COVID after vaccination produce much less virus than those who are unvaccinated, reducing the risk of passing the virus to others. WHO officials said that more studies are needed to understand the vaccines’ impact on transmissibility.

106421844-1583240715176gettyimages-1204881407

Most fully vaccinated people who get COVID delta infections are asymptomatic, WHO says

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="740" height="416" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/106908187-1625750975755-gettyimages-1233776188-AFP_9DT49L.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-409006" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/106908187-1625750975755-gettyimages-1233776188-AFP_9DT49L.jpeg 740w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/106908187-1625750975755-gettyimages-1233776188-AFP_9DT49L-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/106908187-1625750975755-gettyimages-1233776188-AFP_9DT49L-140x80.jpeg 140w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 740px) 100vw, 740px" /><figcaption>Health workers inoculate a woman in Peru. DIEGO RAMOS | AFP | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



More than 18 months into the COVID-19 pandemic and the world is used to news of new variants of the virus by now, particularly those that have, one by one, supplanted previous versions of the disease.



Some mutations of the virus, like the alpha variant and the delta variant — discovered first in the U.K. and India, respectively — have been more transmissible than previous iterations of the virus and have gone on to dominate globally. Whenever a new variant of the coronavirus emerges, scientists watch it closely.



While the world is still contending with the rapid spread of the delta variant, which has usurped the alpha variant in terms of transmissibility and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(21)01358-1/fulltext#articleInformation" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">the potential to cause hospitalizations</a>&nbsp;in unvaccinated people, there is now a new variant that experts are monitoring: The lambda variant.



Here’s what we know (and don’t know) about it:



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-the-lambda-variant">What is the lambda variant?</h2>



The lambda variant, or “C.37” as the lineage has been designated, has been spreading rapidly in South America, particularly in Peru where the earliest documented samples of the virus date from August 2020.



However, it was only flagged up as a “variant of interest” by the World Health Organization on June 14 this year as cases attributed to the variant had spread noticeably.



In its report in mid-June, the WHO reported that “lambda has been associated with substantive rates of community transmission in multiple countries, with rising prevalence over time concurrent with increased COVID-19 incidence” and that more investigations would be carried out into the variant.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-where-is-it-exactly">Where is it exactly?</h2>



The WHO noted in its June 15 report that the lambda variant had been detected in 29 countries, territories or areas in five WHO regions, although it has a stronger presence in South America.



“Authorities in Peru reported that 81% of COVID-19 cases sequenced since April 2021 were associated with Lambda. Argentina reported increasing prevalence of Lambda since the third week of February 2021, and between 2 April and 19 May 2021, the variant accounted for 37% of the COVID-19 cases sequenced,” the WHO noted.



Meanwhile, in Chile, the prevalence of lambda has increased over time, accounting for 32% of sequenced cases reported in the last 60 days, the WHO said, adding that it was co-circulating at similar rates to the gamma variant but was “out-competing” the alpha variant in the same time period.



By June 24, the lambda variant had been detected&nbsp;<a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/997418/Variants_of_Concern_VOC_Technical_Briefing_17.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">in cases in 26 countries</a>, according to Public Health England data. This included Chile, Argentina, Peru, Ecuador, Brazil and Colombia as well as the U.S., Canada, Germany, Spain, Israel, France, the U.K. and Zimbabwe, among others.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-is-it-more-dangerous">Is it more dangerous?</h2>



The WHO and other public health bodies are trying to understand how the variant compares to other strains of the virus, including whether it could be more transmissible and more resistant to vaccines.



In mid-June, the WHO said that “lambda carries a number of mutations with suspected phenotypic implications, such as a potential increased transmissibility or possible increased resistance to neutralizing antibodies.”



Noting the specific mutations in the spike protein (some of which have been described as unusual by experts) the WHO said that: “There is currently limited evidence on the full extent of the impact associated with these genomic changes” and further studies are needed “to better understand the impact on countermeasures [against COVID-19] and to control the spread.”



It’s important to note that the lambda variant is still one step below being designated a “variant of concern” like the alpha or delta mutations. In a press conference last week, the WHO’s technical lead on COVID-19, Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, was asked what would need to happen for it to change its definition of the lambda variant.



“It would become a variant of concern if it has demonstrated pathways of increased transmissibility, if it has increased severity for example or if it has some kind of impact on our countermeasures,” she said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Do vaccines work against it?</h2>



Again, more studies are needed about the effect that the lambda variant has on vaccine efficacy, particularly on vaccines widely available in the West, such as those from Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna or Oxford-AstraZeneca.



But <a href="http://www.asianews.it/news-en/Doubts-growing-in-Chile,-Brazil,-and-Peru-about-the-effectiveness-of-Chinese-anti-COVID-vaccines-53452.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">questions have been raised in parts of South America over the effectiveness of Chinese vaccines</a>, which have been those deployed predominantly in the region, as cases linked to the lambda variant spread and infection rates rise alongside vaccination programs. Brazil, Chile and Peru all rely heavily on Chinese COVID vaccines Sinovac or Sinopharm but vaccination rates differ wildly across South America.



<a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.06.28.21259673v1.full.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">One study that was carried out by the University of Chile in Santiago</a>&nbsp;which looked at healthcare workers who had received two doses of China’s CoronaVac (or Sinovac) vaccine suggested that the mutations present in the spike protein of the lambda variant “confer increased infectivity and immune escape from neutralizing antibodies.” The study, published on July 1, has not yet been peer-reviewed.



<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/07/08/five-vaccinated-countries-with-high-covid-rates-rely-on-china-vaccines.html">Chinese vaccines face rising doubts about their efficacy</a>, compounded by a lack of data on their protection against the more transmissible delta variant. Weekly COVID cases, adjusted for population, have remained elevated in at least six of the world’s most inoculated countries — and five of those nations rely on vaccines from China.



No vaccine currently available is seen as 100% effective at preventing COVID-19 infection, although China’s vaccines have so far fared worse in clinical trials. <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/01/13/chinas-sinovac-vaccine-reportedly-50point4percent-effective-in-brazilian-trial.html">Sinovac was seen as 50.4% effective in a Brazilian trial</a> whose results were published in January. <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2020/12/09/chinas-covid-vaccine-from-sinopharm-is-86percent-effective-uae-says-.html">A study in the UAE published last December found the Sinopharm vaccine to be 86% effective</a>.



China has defended its vaccines, however, and experts note that countries shouldn’t stop using Chinese COVID vaccines especially amid a lack of supply in low- and middle-income nations.

106908187-1625750975755-gettyimages-1233776188-AFP_9DT49L

Here’s what you need to know about the lambda COVID variant

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/VMHFF6DIYBMS7FX4TRDLEDLHJM-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-408954" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/VMHFF6DIYBMS7FX4TRDLEDLHJM-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/VMHFF6DIYBMS7FX4TRDLEDLHJM-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/VMHFF6DIYBMS7FX4TRDLEDLHJM-120x80.jpg 120w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/VMHFF6DIYBMS7FX4TRDLEDLHJM-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/VMHFF6DIYBMS7FX4TRDLEDLHJM.jpg 960w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption>A pack of AstraZeneca/Oxford vaccines is seen as the country receives its first batch of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccines under COVAX scheme, at the international airtport of Accra, Ghana February 24, 2021. REUTERS/Francis Kokoroko</figcaption></figure>



JOHANNESBURG/NAIROBI, July 8 (Reuters) &#8211; The global vaccine distribution scheme COVAX aims to deliver 520 million COVID-19 vaccine doses to Africa this year, its managing director said, with supplies ramping up from September after delays caused by Indian export restrictions.



Aurelia Nguyen told a news conference on Thursday organised by the World Health Organization&#8217;s Africa region that the scheme had delivered around 25 million doses to 44 African countries so far, but she was not happy with progress.



In early March, the CEO of vaccine alliance Gavi, one of the organisations co-leading COVAX, had said the aim was to supply Africa &#8211; whose total population is 1.3 billion &#8211; with 720 million doses in 2021.



But later that month India placed a hold on vaccine exports, deepening problems for COVAX, which was heavily dependent on doses from the Serum Institute of India, which is one of the world&#8217;s largest vaccine manufacturers and has been producing AstraZeneca shots.



Nguyen said COVAX had been in talks with the Indian government and Serum Institute and that it was factoring in a resumption of supplies &#8220;towards the later part of the year&#8221; although the situation was still fluid.



By the end of the first quarter of 2022, COVAX aims to supply nearly 850 million vaccine doses to the African continent, which has some of the lowest COVID-19 vaccination rates worldwide.



That new target is enough to protect up to 30% of the population of every African country that qualifies for subsidised doses under COVAX&#8217;s so-called Advance Market Commitment, Nguyen added.



African countries will receive doses from COVAX&#8217;s portfolio of nine vaccines, which as well as AstraZeneca include shots developed by Pfizer, Johnson &amp; Johnson and Moderna.



Addressing the same conference, South Africa-based Professor Tulio de Oliveira, a genomics expert, said the more infectious Delta coronavirus variant was spreading rapidly throughout Africa, accounting for roughly three-quarters of the genomes sequenced on the continent recently and driving up deaths.



&#8220;More than ever it&#8217;s time to increase vaccination,&#8221; he said.



Africa&#8217;s top public health official, John Nkengasong, said separately that only 1.2% of the continent&#8217;s population had been fully vaccinated.



He said the situation in Senegal and Ghana, which are running low on COVID-19 vaccine supplies, was not unique owing to the COVAX delays, but that a U.S. donation of 15 million doses would soon start to be distributed via the facility.



The African Union&#8217;s vaccine task team will also start rolling out 7 million Johnson &amp; Johnson shots next week, Nkengasong said. 



(Reporting by Alexander Winning in Johannesburg and George Obulutsa in Nairobi Editing by Peter Graff and Mark Heinrich)

A pack of AstraZeneca/Oxford vaccines is seen as the country receives its first batch of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccines under COVAX scheme, at the international airtport of Accra, Ghana February 24, 2021. REUTERS/Francis Kokoroko

COVAX aims to deliver 520 mln vaccine doses to Africa this year

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="740" height="416" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/106883667-16211748792021-04-26t162613z_1398800200_rc2s3n9olgrx_rtrmadp_0_health-coronavirus-italy.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-408890" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/106883667-16211748792021-04-26t162613z_1398800200_rc2s3n9olgrx_rtrmadp_0_health-coronavirus-italy.jpeg 740w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/106883667-16211748792021-04-26t162613z_1398800200_rc2s3n9olgrx_rtrmadp_0_health-coronavirus-italy-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/106883667-16211748792021-04-26t162613z_1398800200_rc2s3n9olgrx_rtrmadp_0_health-coronavirus-italy-140x80.jpeg 140w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 740px) 100vw, 740px" /><figcaption>A couple enjoys aperitivo evening drinks sitting down at a bar as much of the country becomes a ‘yellow zone’, easing coronavirus disease (COVID-19) restrictions allowing bars and restaurants to serve clients at outdoor tables, in Venice, Italy, April 26, 2021. Manuel Silvestri | Reuters</figcaption></figure>



The World Health Organization is urging “extreme caution” against lifting public health measures in countries around the world as the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/coronavirus/">Covid pandemic</a>&nbsp;rages in countries with low vaccination rates and puts other regions at risk for the spread of variants.



Countries with high vaccination rates like the United States and the United Kingdom have been gradually lifting public health measures while other countries are battling their worst outbreaks since the beginning of the pandemic.



“We’re tracking this virus circulation all over the world and we are seeing sharp increases in far too many countries right now,” Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO’s Covid-19 technical lead said at a briefing Wednesday.



The European region saw a 33% increase in Covid cases in the last week, but high vaccination rates can give the perception that the pandemic is over, WHO officials said.



“This is not a flat curve, this is an increasing curve. Making assumptions that transmission will not increase because we’re opening up because of vaccines is a false assumption, transmission will increase when you open up,” said Dr. Mike Ryan, executive director of WHO’s Health Emergencies Program. “There are consequences.”



The delta variant that dominated the U.K. is now the dominant strain in the United States. The variant is more transmissible and could result in more severe disease, though more studies are needed to confirm that, WHO officials have previously said.



Ryan said he hopes we don’t see a return to overwhelmed hospitals and exhausted health workers in Europe as the virus is still evolving and changing. He warned that nations need to be “very, very careful” so that the gains they’ve made in combating the pandemic are sustained.



“The idea that everyone is protected and it’s Kumbaya and everything is back to normal I think right now is a very dangerous assumption anywhere in the world,” Ryan said.



There have been roughly 185 million confirmed cases of Covid across the globe and 4 million deaths so far, which WHO officials said is likely an undercount.



Some countries with high vaccination rates are planning to administer booster shots in the coming months, dropping mask mandates and “relaxing as though the pandemic is already over,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.



Far too many countries are seeing spikes in cases and hospitalizations that’s leading to a shortage of oxygen and driving a “wave of death” in parts of Africa, Asia and Latin America, he said.



“Vaccine nationalism where a handful of nations have taken the lion’s share is morally indefensible and an ineffective public health strategy against a respiratory virus that’s mutating quickly and becoming increasingly effective at moving from human to human,” Tedros said.



He said variants are currently winning the race against vaccines due to inequitable distribution of the lifesaving shots. At this stage in the pandemic, there are still millions of health-care workers that haven’t been vaccinated, which Tedros said was abhorrent: “It doesn’t have to be this way going forward.”

106883667-16211748792021-04-26t162613z_1398800200_rc2s3n9olgrx_rtrmadp_0_health-coronavirus-italy

WHO urges extreme caution against completely lifting public health measures

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/GettyImages-1229877394-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-392963" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/GettyImages-1229877394-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/GettyImages-1229877394-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/GettyImages-1229877394-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/GettyImages-1229877394-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/GettyImages-1229877394-scaled.jpg 2048w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/GettyImages-1229877394-1110x740.jpg 1110w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption>NETHERLANDS &#8211; 2020/11/29: In this photo illustration, a man holds a syringe with a fake Covid-19 vaccine with the Pfizer logo in the background. (Photo Illustration by Robin Utrecht/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>



HARARE/NAIROBI, July 1 (Reuters) &#8211; The United States will begin shipping the first batch of COVID-19 vaccines it has donated to Africa from this weekend, a special envoy of the African Union said on Thursday, as the continent sees a surge in cases fuelled by variants.



Separately, the World Health Organization Africa head Matshidiso Moeti warned on Thursday that the third wave hitting the continent was &#8220;like nothing we&#8217;ve seen before.&#8221;



U.S. President Joe Biden&#8217;s administration announced last month it would donate 500 million Pfizer coronavirus vaccine doses to the 100 lowest income countries in the world and will seek no favours in exchange for the doses.



Strive Masiyiwa told a weekly online briefing of the Africa Centres for Disease Control that the donations consisted largely of Pfizer doses and a few Johnson &amp; Johnson vaccines.



&#8220;We begin to ship by this weekend the U.S. donations. So some countries will begin to receive early next week shipments that are Johnson &amp; Johnson, others will receive shipments that are Pfizer. No country will receive both,&#8221; Masiyiwa said.



Masiyiwa is part of the African Vaccine Acquisition Trust, which is helping coordinate the distribution of the vaccines donated by the United States.



Read: <a href="https://www.cnbcafrica.com/2021/we-cannot-afford-another-india-to-prevent-a-catastrophic-third-wave-of-covid-19-in-africa-look-at-data-to-drive-the-response/">We cannot afford another India—to prevent a catastrophic third wave of COVID-19 in Africa, look at data to drive the response</a>



The continent is lagging behind in vaccinating its population, with just 1% fully inoculated, John Nkengasong, the Africa CDC director said during the same meeting.



Africa aimed to have 800 million doses by December this year but had only received 65 million so far, Nkengasong said.



At a later briefing on Thursday, Moeti said the surge in cases was being fuelled by more contagious variants.



&#8220;The Delta variant of concern is the most contagious we&#8217;ve seen. It has been found in 16 African countries so far, including three out of the five countries reporting the most new cases,&#8221; Moeti told reporters.



She urged urgent action on the part of wealthier nations on the sharing of vaccines.



Just over 1% of Africans are now fully vaccinated, compared to 11% of people globally, and over 46% of people in the United Kingdom and the United States, she added.



&#8220;Africa must not be left languishing in the throes of its worst wave yet,&#8221; she said. 



(Reporting by MacDonald Dzirutwe in Harare and Omar Mohammed in Nairobi; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky, Alexandra Hudson)

In this photo illustration, a man holds a syringe with a

Africa to get U.S. COVID shots next week as cases surge

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="580" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/vaccine-5873170_1280-820x580.jpg" alt="native" class="wp-image-408136" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/vaccine-5873170_1280-820x580.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/vaccine-5873170_1280-300x212.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/vaccine-5873170_1280-113x80.jpg 113w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/vaccine-5873170_1280-768x543.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/vaccine-5873170_1280.jpg 1280w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption>Photo: via Flickr</figcaption></figure>



WASHINGTON, June 30 (Reuters) &#8211; The World Bank on Wednesday pledged to boost available funding for COVID-19 vaccine purchases and deployment to $20 billion from a previous target of $12 billion, citing a sharp increase in overall financing demand from developing countries.



World Bank President David Malpass said the global development bank had already provided more than $4 billion to 51 developing countries for the purchase and deployment of COVID-19 vaccines, and would add billions for 25 more countries soon.



&#8220;Much more will follow in coming weeks,&#8221; Malpass told reporters, noting that a total of 41 requests had been received from African countries, where less than half the population has been vaccinated.



In a <a href="https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2021/06/30/pr21201-joint-statement-heads-wb-imf-who-wto-first-meeting-task-force-covid-19-developing-countries">joint statement</a>, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the World Health Organization urged G20 countries to embrace vaccinated population targets of at least 40% by the end of 2021 and 60% by the first half of 2022.



They also urged the G20 major economies, whose finance leaders meet next week in Italy, to adopt the goal of sharing at least 1 billion vaccine doses with developing countries this year, and to increase financing and eliminate trade barriers in the vaccine supply chain.



Watch: <a href="https://www.cnbcafrica.com/2021/world-bank-to-commit-150bn-for-investments-in-africa-over-5-years/">World Bank to commit $150bn for investments in Africa over 5 years</a>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-release-doses">RELEASE DOSES</h2>



Malpass also redoubled his call for countries with surplus doses to release them and any options for more for use by developing countries, with adequate plans for distribution.



The World Bank was also continuing to press for greater transparency by governments and pharmaceutical companies about vaccine contracts, options and agreements, he said.



&#8220;We&#8217;re at war with the vaccine,&#8221; Malpass said, adding that tight supplies and high demand made it crucial to have sufficient information to keep production flowing. &#8220;COVID&#8217;s not going to go away quickly. It&#8217;s going to be a long-term war.&#8221;



The decision to increase funding for vaccinations reflects growing concern about widely divergent vaccination rates between advanced economies and developing countries, World Bank officials said.



The World Bank has seen a sharp increase in overall financing demand from developing countries &#8211; not just health-related expenditure &#8211; during the pandemic, said the bank&#8217;s managing director for operations, Axel van Trotsenburg.



He told reporters that the World Bank&#8217;s International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the International Development Association had made lending commitments of nearly $100 billion since the start of the crisis, well above the normal level of just under $60 billion. High demand for financing was expected to continue well into 2022, he said.



Van Trotsenburg noted that many middle-income countries in Latin America had been requesting financing from the bank, noting that requests totaling over $1 billion had been received in the past six weeks alone.



The World Bank&#8217;s vaccine financing package can be used by countries to buy vaccine doses through COVAX, the new African Vaccine Acquisition Task Team (AVATT) or other sources. 



(Reporting by Andrea Shalal; editing by Franklin Paul, Jonathan Oatis and Richard Chang)

istockphoto-1250489640-640×640

World Bank says will boost COVID-19 vaccine funding to $20 bln

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/50040303488_0d0e6b7a0a_k-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-408364" width="820" height="547" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/50040303488_0d0e6b7a0a_k-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/50040303488_0d0e6b7a0a_k-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/50040303488_0d0e6b7a0a_k-120x80.jpg 120w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/50040303488_0d0e6b7a0a_k-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/50040303488_0d0e6b7a0a_k-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/50040303488_0d0e6b7a0a_k.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption>Gita Gopinath provides the World Economic Outlook update during the COVID-19 Pandemic at the International Monetary Fund in Washington, D.C. on June 24, 2020. IMF Photo/Cory Hancock</figcaption></figure>



LONDON, June 30 (Reuters) &#8211; The global economy is recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic at an uneven pace due to unequal access to vaccinations, with the Delta variant threatening those countries lacking essential medical supplies, the IMF&#8217;s chief economist warned on Wednesday.



Well over a year on from the start of the pandemic, many countries are still battling the virus, particularly the increasingly dominant and highly infectious Delta variant. Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Australia are all battling pandemic outbreaks and tightening restrictions.



&#8220;Right now what we are seeing is highly unequal access to vaccinations, including therapeutics and diagnostics. Therefore, what we&#8217;re seeing is a diverging recovery,&#8221; International Monetary Fund chief economist Gita Gopinath said during a webinar at the annual meeting of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.



&#8220;The number one issue is how do we get to a point where we have good coverage of populations in terms of vaccination rates everywhere in the world.&#8221;



Referencing surges in sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America, Gopinath said there were countries that will not have the required testing, personal protective equipment or oxygen to &#8220;survive this surge.&#8221;



After the steepest annual downturn of the postwar era, the IMF expects global growth to rebound robustly this year. In April it raised its growth estimates for the global economy to 6% this year, while forecasting smaller improvements in emerging economies than their developed peers.



The crisis had been &#8220;exceptionally regressive&#8221; on issues ranging from food security to poverty and debt, said World Bank chief economist Carmen Reinhart.



Meanwhile, as an uneven global recovery takes shape many countries are being tested by sharp increases in inflationary pressures, Reinhart said.



Investors have been on alert for signs of inflation, in the United States in particular, with concerns elevated about the pace of removal of policy support from the Federal Reserve and other major central banks.



The United States was seeing transitory pressures around inflation linked to supply and demand mismatches showing up in delivery delays, with risks on the upside, Gopinath said.



&#8220;A lot of these sources (of inflation) are transitive in nature – there is reason to believe that by next year these numbers will come back down to more normal levels,&#8221; she said. &#8220;Right now, my view is that we are in a state where we see transitory movements in inflation and that they will come down.&#8221;



“There&#8217;s of course always risks on the upside&#8221; 



(Reporting by Tom Arnold and Elizabeth Howcroft; editing by Karin Strohecker and Jonathan Oatis)

Gita Gopinath provides the World Economic Outlook update during the COVID-19 Pandemic at the International Monetary Fund in Washington, D.C. on June 24, 2020. IMF Photo/Cory Hancock

Unequal access to vaccines skews global recovery, says IMF chief economist

Covishield is produced by the Serum Institute of India (SII) and has been distributed to African nations as part of the COVAX initiative to give poor and developing countries access to COVID-19 vaccines.



But Covishield is not one of four vaccines approved by the European Union for its planned digital vaccination certificate, which is intended to allow people to travel freely within the EU.



The 54-nation African Union said in a statement late on Monday that Covishield&#8217;s exclusion could lead to discrimination against African travellers.



Non-recognition of Covishield endangers the &#8220;equitable treatment of persons having received their vaccines in countries profiting from the EU-supported COVAX Facility, including the majority of the African Union (AU) Member States,&#8221; it said.



Those who have been inoculated with vaccines not approved by the EU for the certificate could still face restrictions on their movement and testing requirements with high financial costs, the AU said.



The travel certificate will show if a person has received a vaccine, had a recent negative test, or had immunity based on recovery.



It will take the form of a QR (Quick Response) code on a smartphone or paper, letting authorities determine the status of a visitor based on records in their home country.



The AstraZeneca shot is one of the four approved for the EU certificate, but the list does not extend to Covishield. The other EU-recognised vaccines are those made by Moderna , Pfizer and BioNTech, and Johnson &amp; Johnson. 



(Reporting by Elias Biryabarema, Editing by Timothy Heritage)

A man displays a vial AstraZeneca’s COVISHIELD vaccine as the country receives its first batch of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccines under COVAX scheme, in Accra, Ghana February 24, 2021. REUTERS/Francis Kokoroko

African Union wants Covishield approved for EU COVID-19 certificate

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/vaccine-5873170_1280-820x580.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-408136" width="820" height="580" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/vaccine-5873170_1280-820x580.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/vaccine-5873170_1280-300x212.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/vaccine-5873170_1280-113x80.jpg 113w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/vaccine-5873170_1280-768x543.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/vaccine-5873170_1280.jpg 1280w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption>Coronavirus Vaccine Photo: via Pixabay</figcaption></figure>



WASHINGTON, June 28 (Reuters) &#8211; COVID-19 infections in Africa will likely exceed previous peaks within days, underscoring an urgent need to accelerate vaccine supplies and financing to the region, International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said on Monday.



Georgieva said in a blog posting with IMF Africa Department director Abebe Selassie that sub-Saharan Africa, already with the lowest vaccination rates in the world at less than 1% of the population, again risks having its health care systems overwhelmed without immediate action.



&#8220;Without significant, upfront, international assistance &#8211; and without an effective region-wide vaccination effort &#8211; the near-term future of sub-Saharan Africa will be one of repeated waves of infection, which will exact an ever-increasing toll on the lives and livelihoods of the region’s most vulnerable, while also paralyzing investment, productivity, and growth,&#8221; Georgieva and Selassie wrote https://blogs.imf.org/2021/06/28/sub-saharan-africa-we-need-to-act-now.



&#8220;In short, without help the region risks being left further and further behind,&#8221; they said, and added the longer the pandemic ravages Africa, more dangerous variants of the novel coronavirus will emerge to threaten the rest of the world.



The IMF officials urged wealthy nations to more quickly share their vaccine stockpiles with Africa through the COVAX initiative, saying that a goal should be to deliver a quarter of a billion doses to the region by September.



Vaccine manufacturers should shift supplies to Africa, while the African Union&#8217;s African Vaccine Acquisition Task Team should be financed at an estimated $2 billion, which would allow an option for the group to execute an optional contract for 180 million doses of the Johnson and Johnson vaccine, Georgieva and Selassie said.



They also called for the removal of cross-border export restrictions on raw materials and finished vaccines to help ensure that South Africa and India can reach full production capacity. 



(Reporting by David Lawder; editing by Barbara Lewis)

vaccine-5873170_1280

IMF says Africa urgently needs vaccines to halt repeated COVID waves

Sub-Saharan Africa is in the grips of a third wave of COVID-19 infections that threatens to be even more brutal than the two that came before.



This is yet more evidence of a dangerous divergence in the global economy. One track for countries with good access to vaccines, where strong recoveries are taking hold. And another for those countries that are still waiting and at risk of falling further behind.



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/chart1-blog28_original-756x800.png" alt="native" class="wp-image-408128" width="381" height="403" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/chart1-blog28_original-756x800.png 756w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/chart1-blog28_original-283x300.png 283w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/chart1-blog28_original-76x80.png 76w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/chart1-blog28_original.png 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 381px) 100vw, 381px" /></figure></div>



The growth of infections in sub-Saharan Africa is now the fastest in the world, with an explosive trajectory that is outpacing the record set in the second wave. At this pace, this new wave will likely surpass previous peaks in a matter of days—and in some countries, infections are already more than double, or even triple, their January peaks. The latest (delta) variant—reportedly 60 percent more transmissible than earlier variants—has been detected in 14 countries.



When the pandemic first hit, quick action by policymakers helped prevent infection rates seen elsewhere around the world. But it pushed already strained local health systems to the breaking point. Only six months after the initial crisis, the region experienced a second wave that swiftly outpaced the scale and speed of the first. Now, another six months on, sub-Saharan Africa faces its third devastating wave.



The only way for the region to break free from this vicious pandemic cycle is to swiftly implement a widespread vaccination program.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-still-vulnerable-region">A still-vulnerable region</h2>



The sheer speed of this third wave highlights the difficulty policymakers in sub‑Saharan Africa face in heading off a crisis once it gets under way. In Namibia, for example, new cases reached the previous January peak within only two weeks, and&nbsp;tripled&nbsp;another two weeks later. For many countries, by the time a new surge is identified, it may already be too late.



And the options employed during previous waves may no longer be feasible. The re-imposition of containment measures would likely come at too high an economic and social cost, and is simply unsustainable—and unenforceable—over a prolonged period.



Looking back, most sub-Saharan African countries entered the second wave in a more difficult economic position than the first, with shrinking fiscal resources to protect the vulnerable, additional millions thrown into poverty, and depleted household balance sheets. While some countries have taken steps to improve preparedness, unfortunately, very few have had sufficient resources—or time—to strengthen public health systems.



And, now, the scale of the current wave is once again threatening to overwhelm local health systems. News reports across the region point to overwhelmed hospitals. The sick are dying while waiting for a bed. Non-emergency surgeries have been canceled to preserve space for COVID-19 patients. And military hospitals have been opened for civilian use. Oxygen has become a key constraint, with supply already failing to keep up with the demand for critically-ill patients. The region’s scarce health workers continue to be at risk.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-risks-of-leaving-africa-behind">The risks of leaving Africa behind</h2>



The vaccine rollout in sub-Saharan Africa remains the slowest in the world. Less than 1 adult in every hundred is fully vaccinated, compared to an average of over 30 in more advanced economies. This means even most essential frontline workers continue to work unprotected. In this context, some of the world’s more fortunate countries have stockpiled enough vaccines to cover their populations many times over.



Without significant, upfront, international assistance—and without an effective region-wide vaccination effort—the near-term future of sub-Saharan Africa will be one of repeated waves of infection, which will exact an ever-increasing toll on the lives and livelihoods of the region’s most vulnerable, while also paralyzing investment, productivity, and growth. In short, without help the region risks being left further and further behind.



And the longer the pandemic is left to ravage Africa, the more likely it is that ever more dangerous variants of the disease will emerge. Vaccination is not simply an issue of local lives and livelihoods. It is also a&nbsp;global&nbsp;public good. For every country—everywhere—the most durable vaccine effort is one that covers&nbsp;everyone, in every country.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-can-be-done-to-speed-up-the-vaccine-effort">What can be done to speed up the vaccine effort?</h2>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft size-full is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/chart2-blog28_original.png" alt="native" class="wp-image-408129" width="395" height="394" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/chart2-blog28_original.png 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/chart2-blog28_original-300x300.png 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/chart2-blog28_original-80x80.png 80w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 395px) 100vw, 395px" /></figure></div>



IMF staff has put forward a global&nbsp;<a href="https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/Staff-Discussion-Notes/Issues/2021/05/19/A-Proposal-to-End-the-COVID-19-Pandemic-460263?utm_medium=email&amp;utm_source=govdelivery">proposal</a>&nbsp;that targets vaccinating at least 40 percent of the total population of all countries by end-2021, and at least 60 percent by the first half of 2022. Africa is expected to receive 30 percent vaccination coverage through COVAX and another 30 percent coverage through the African Vaccine Acquisition Task Team (AVATT), established by the African Union under the leadership of President Cyril Ramaphosa.



We see seven key steps to ensure these vaccination targets are met:



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>First, it is essential to deliver vaccines to sub‑Saharan Africa as soon as possible. Given that much of the global supply of vaccines for 2021 has already been bought up, many countries will be forced to wait until 2022 to get them. So, the fastest way to get vaccines to sub‑Saharan Africa is for advanced economies to share their stockpiles bilaterally or through multilateral initiatives. COVAX has already received pledges for over half a billion doses. But these need to turn into actual deliveries as soon as possible to make a difference. Indeed, the goal should be to get a quarter of a billion doses to the region by September.</li><li>Second, vaccine manufacturers should speed up supply to Africa for the rest of this year. Advanced economies with vaccine manufacturing capabilities should encourage their manufacturers to do so, especially when demand at home is falling short of supply.</li><li>Third, AVATT should be fully financed to ensure coverage of 30 percent of the African Union population. This requires an estimated $2 billion, that would for example allow AVATT to execute its optional contract of 180 million doses with J&amp;J.</li><li>Fourth, remove cross-border export restrictions on raw materials and finished vaccines. This includes ensuring that the Aspen facility in South Africa—a key supplier to AVATT—is operational at full capacity, and resuming exports from the Serum Institute of India to COVAX. African vaccination plans rely heavily on these two facilities.</li><li>Fifth, financing of at least $2.5 billion and upfront planning will also be critical to ensure health systems can deliver shots-in-arm promptly as vaccine supply ramps up. Many countries in the region, including eSwatini, Ghana, Kenya, Namibia, and Rwanda, have quickly and effectively administered their limited supplies. These countries, along with others in the region, have had to place their vaccine campaigns on hold as they wait for the arrival of the new supplies that they have recently procured at comparatively high cost or the donated supplies from other countries’ stockpiles. It is these shortages—rather than the ability to administer shots—that has so far been the biggest constraint. But when supply picks up, health systems must be prepared to vaccinate as many people as possible. And this is doable as the experience in many developing countries show—the likes of Seychelles, Mongolia, Bhutan, and Maldives impressively scaled-up vaccinations quickly once their vaccine supplies arrived.</li><li>Alongside vaccination efforts, countries must also ensure that their public health systems are able to handle an influx of cases. This includes accelerating the acquisition of vital COVID-19 health tools, including therapeutics, oxygen, and personal protective equipment. No matter what the speed of vaccinations, these supplies are needed now to help save lives. This will require urgent grant financing to pre-emptively procure and deliver a minimum package of critical COVID-19 Health Tools to address the rising health and economic costs arising from the surge in cases driven by the delta variant.</li><li>Finally, the magnitude of the region’s financing needs requires a coordinated effort on the part of the international community. Few countries have the fiscal space to finance this effort on their own, considering the region’s already elevated debt levels and already pressing spending needs. Most of the international community’s financial assistance will need to come in the form of grants or concessional loans. With our colleagues from the World Bank, WHO, WTO, and others, the IMF has formed a special task force to ensure that countries get the resources and vaccines they need.</li></ul>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="alignleft size-full is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/chart3-blog28_crop.png" alt="native" class="wp-image-408130" width="393" height="447" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/chart3-blog28_crop.png 560w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/chart3-blog28_crop-264x300.png 264w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/chart3-blog28_crop-70x80.png 70w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 393px) 100vw, 393px" /></figure></div>



As always, Africa can count on the IMF. We remain deeply committed to all countries in the region. We’ve ramped up our lending to sub‑Saharan Africa—last year it was more than 13 times our annual average—and support to increase our access limits will allow us to scale up our zero-interest lending capacity. And the unprecedented $650 billion new SDR allocation, far and away the largest in the Fund’s history, once approved will make $23 billion available to member countries in sub‑Saharan Africa.



Yet the gravity and urgency of the situation requires the global community working together. We all have a stake in this. So, in all countries—advanced and emerging alike—we can reclaim our physical and economic health from the pandemic. And so that sub‑Saharan Africa can resume its path toward a more prosperous future.

corona-5174671_1920

Sub-Saharan Africa: We need to act now.

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="740" height="416" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/106873730-1619444190693-gettyimages-1311873719-20210410-nng_0992_2021041083730875.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-408020" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/106873730-1619444190693-gettyimages-1311873719-20210410-nng_0992_2021041083730875.jpeg 740w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/106873730-1619444190693-gettyimages-1311873719-20210410-nng_0992_2021041083730875-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/106873730-1619444190693-gettyimages-1311873719-20210410-nng_0992_2021041083730875-140x80.jpeg 140w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 740px) 100vw, 740px" /><figcaption>People wear face masks in Central Park on April 10, 2021 in New York City. Noam Galai | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



The World Health Organization on Friday urged fully vaccinated people to continue to wear masks, social distance and practice other&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/coronavirus/">Covid-19 pandemic</a>&nbsp;safety measures as the highly contagious delta variant spreads rapidly across the globe.



“People cannot feel safe just because they had the two doses. They still need to protect themselves,” Dr. Mariangela Simao, WHO assistant director-general for access to medicines and health products, said during a news briefing from the agency’s Geneva headquarters.



“Vaccine alone won’t stop community transmission,” Simao added. “People need to continue to use masks consistently, be in ventilated spaces, hand hygiene &#8230; the physical distance, avoid crowding. This still continues to be extremely important, even if you’re vaccinated when you have a community transmission ongoing.”



The health organization’s comments come as some countries, including the United States, have largely done away with masks and pandemic-related restrictions as the Covid vaccines have helped drive down the number of new infections and deaths.



The number of new infections in the U.S. has held steady over the last week at an average of 11,659 new cases per day, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. Still, new infections have been plummeting over the last several months.



WHO officials said they are asking fully vaccinated people to continue to “play it safe” because a large portion of the world remains unvaccinated and highly contagious variants, like delta, are spreading in many countries, spurring outbreaks.



The Wall Street Journal&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/vaccinated-people-account-for-half-of-new-covid-19-delta-cases-in-israeli-outbreak-11624624326" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported Friday</a>&nbsp;that about half of adults infected in an outbreak of the delta variant in Israel were fully vaccinated with the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/quotes/PFE" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Pfizer</a>&#8211;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/quotes/22UA-DE" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">BioNTech</a>&nbsp;vaccine, prompting the government there to reimpose an indoor mask requirement and other measures.



“Yes, you can reduce some measures and different countries have different recommendations in that regard. But there’s still the need for caution,” Dr. Bruce Aylward, a senior advisor to the WHO’s director-general, said at the briefing. “As we are seeing, there are new variants emerging.”



The WHO said last week that delta is becoming&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/18/who-says-delta-is-becoming-the-dominant-covid-variant-globally.html">the dominant variant</a>&nbsp;of the disease worldwide.



WHO officials have said the variant, first found in India but now in at least 92 countries, is the fastest and fittest coronavirus strain yet, and it will “pick off” the most vulnerable people, especially in places with low Covid&nbsp;vaccination rates.



They said there were reports that the delta variant also causes more severe symptoms, but that more research is needed to confirm those conclusions. Still,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/17/covid-delta-variant-symptoms-spread-and-what-to-look-out-for.html">there are signs</a>&nbsp;the delta strain could provoke different symptoms than other variants.



It has the potential “to be more lethal because it’s more efficient in the way it transmits between humans and it will eventually find those vulnerable individuals who will become severely ill, have to be hospitalized and potentially die,” Dr. Mike Ryan, executive director of the WHO’s health emergencies program, said Monday.



In the U.S., President&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/joe-biden/">Joe Biden</a>&nbsp;said Covid deaths nationwide&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/24/biden-says-more-americans-will-die-as-delta-variant-spreads-you-know-its-going-to-happen.html">will continue to rise due to the spread of the “dangerous” delta variant</a>, calling it a “serious concern.”



He warned that Americans who are still unvaccinated are especially at risk.



“Six hundred thousand-plus Americans have died, and with this delta variant you know there’s going to be others as well. You know it’s going to happen. We’ve got to get young people vaccinated,” Biden said Thursday at a community center in Raleigh, North Carolina

106873730-1619444190693-gettyimages-1311873719-20210410-nng_0992_2021041083730875

WHO urges fully vaccinated people to continue to wear masks as delta Covid variant spreads

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/106901904-1624524865973-gettyimages-1233623465-AFP_9D249G.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-407813" width="834" height="469" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/106901904-1624524865973-gettyimages-1233623465-AFP_9D249G.jpeg 740w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/106901904-1624524865973-gettyimages-1233623465-AFP_9D249G-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/106901904-1624524865973-gettyimages-1233623465-AFP_9D249G-140x80.jpeg 140w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 834px) 100vw, 834px" /><figcaption>People queue outside a vaccination center in Sydney on June 24, 2021, as residents were largely banned from leaving the city to stop a growing outbreak of the highly contagious Delta Covid-19 variant spreading to other regions. SAEED KHAN | AFP | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



The “delta variant” has come to dominate headlines, having been discovered in India where it provoked an extreme surge in Covid-19 cases&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/16/who-says-delta-covid-variant-has-now-spread-to-80-countries-and-it-keeps-mutating.html">before spreading around the world</a>.



But now a mutation of that variant has emerged, called “delta plus,” which is starting to worry global experts.



India has dubbed delta plus a “variant of concern,” and there are fears that it could potentially be more transmissible. In the U.K., Public Health England noted in its last summary that routine scanning of Covid cases in the country (where the delta variant is now responsible for the bulk of new infections) has found almost 40 cases of the delta variant, which has acquired the spike protein mutation K417N, i.e. delta plus.



It noted that, as of June 16, cases of the delta plus variant had also been identified in the U.S. (83 cases at the time the report was published last Friday) as well as Canada, India, Japan, Nepal, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Switzerland and Turkey.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-india-third-wave">India third wave?</h2>



As is common with all viruses, the coronavirus has mutated repeatedly since it emerged in China in late 2019. There have been a handful of variants that have emerged over the course of the pandemic that have changed the virus’ transmissibility, risk profile and even symptoms.



Several of those variants, such as the “alpha” variant (previously known as the “Kent” or “British” variant) and then the delta variant, have gone on to be dominant strains globally, hence the attention on delta plus.



India’s Health Ministry reportedly said Wednesday that it had found around 40 cases of the delta plus variant with the K417N mutation. The ministry&nbsp;<a href="https://content.pib.iostechtools.com/1729467/web.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">released a statement on Tuesday</a>&nbsp;in which it said that INSACOG, a consortium of 28 laboratories genome sequencing the virus in India during the pandemic, had informed it that the delta plus variant has three worrying characteristics.



These are, it said: increased transmissibility, stronger binding to receptors of lung cells and the potential reduction in monoclonal antibody response (<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/16/regeneron-antibody-cocktail-can-save-lives-in-hospitalized-covid-patients.html">which could reduce the efficacy of a life-saving monoclonal antibody therapy</a>&nbsp;given to some hospitalized Covid patients).



India’s health ministry said it had alerted three states (Maharashtra, Kerala and Madhya Pradesh) after the delta plus variant was detected in genome sequenced samples from those areas.



The detection of a variation to the delta variant largely blamed for India’s catastrophic second wave of cases has stoked fears that India is ill-prepared for a potential third wave. But some experts are urging calm.



Dr. Chandrakant Lahariya,a physician-epidemiologist and vaccines and health systems expert based in New Delhi, told CNBC Thursday that that while the government should remain alert to the progress of the variant, there is “no reason to panic.”



“Epidemiologically speaking, I have no reason to believe that ‘Delta plus’ alters the current situation in a manner to accelerate or trigger the third wave,” he told CNBC via email.



“If we go by the currently available evidence, Delta plus is not very different from Delta variant. It is the same Delta variant with one additional mutation. The only clinical difference, which we know till now, is that Delta plus has some resistance to monoclonal antibody combination therapy. And that is not a major difference as the therapy itself is investigational and few are eligible for this treatment.”



He advised the public to follow Covid restrictions and to get vaccinated as soon as possible. Analysis from Public Health England released last week showed that two doses of the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/quotes/PFE" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Pfizer</a>&#8211;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/quotes/22UA-DE" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">BioNTech</a>&nbsp;or Oxford-<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/quotes/AZN-GB" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">AstraZeneca</a>&nbsp;Covid-19 vaccines are highly effective against hospitalization from the delta variant.



The WHO has said that it is tracking recent reports of a “delta plus” variant. “An additional mutation &#8230; has been identified,” Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO’s Covid-19 technical lead said at a briefing last week.



“In some of the delta variants we’ve seen one less mutation or one deletion instead of an additional, so we’re looking at all of it.”

106901904-1624524865973-gettyimages-1233623465-AFP_9D249G

Delta Covid variant has a new mutation called ‘delta plus’: Here’s what you need to know

HARARE, June 24 (Reuters) &#8211; Africa is not winning its fight against the COVID-19 pandemic as a third virus wave sweeps the continent and countries struggle to access enough vaccines for their populations, Africa CDC director John Nkenkasong said on Thursday.



The COVAX programme co-led by the World Health Organization (WHO) for fair distribution of vaccines is now planning a shake-up as it has been shunned by rich countries and failing to meet the needs of the poorest, internal documents seen by Reuters show.



Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) director Nkenkasong said he was more worried about getting vaccines in time regardless of where the doses came from.



&#8220;The third wave has come with severity that most countries were not prepared for. So the third wave is extremely brutal,&#8221; Nenkasong said during a weekly online briefing.



&#8220;Let me put it bluntly, we are not winning in Africa this battle against the virus so it does not really matter to me whether the vaccines are from COVAX or anywhere. All we need is rapid access to vaccines.&#8221;



Nkenkasong said at least 20 countries were in the middle of the third wave, with Zambia, Uganda and Democratic Republic of Congo among those whose health facilities were being overwhelmed.



The COVAX programme&#8217;s initial lofty ambitions to act as a clearing house for the world&#8217;s vaccines, collecting from the manufacturers in the most developed countries and quickly distributing to those in the most urgent need, have fallen flat.



About 1.12% people have been fully vaccinated on a continent that has recorded 5.2 million infections, Nkenkasong said.



More than half of poorer countries receiving doses via COVAX do not have enough supplies to continue, an official from the WHO said on Monday. 



(Reporting by MacDonald Dzirutwe; Editing by Toby Chopra)

Africa CDC says continent not winning against ‘brutal’ COVID-19 pandemic

June 22 (Reuters) &#8211; Here&#8217;s what you need to know about the coronavirus right now:



Philippines&#8217; Duterte threatens jail for refusing vaccination



President Rodrigo Duterte threatened to jail people who refuse to be vaccinated against the coronavirus as the Philippines battles one of Asia&#8217;s worst outbreaks, with over 1.3 million cases and more than 23,000 deaths.



&#8220;You choose, vaccine or I will have you jailed,&#8221; Duterte said in a televised address on Monday following reports of low turnouts at several vaccination sites in the capital Manila.



Duterte&#8217;s remarks contradict those of his health officials who have said that while people were urged to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, it was voluntary.



Olympics-Tokyo residents criticise alcohol sales plan



Olympic organisers will allow the sale of alcohol to Tokyo 2020 spectators, Kyodo News reported on Tuesday, drawing criticism as residents of the capital grapple with curbs on bars to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.



Alcohol will be served at Olympic venues at limited times, Kyodo reported, citing anonymous sources, a decision that follows the approval on Monday of up to 10,000 domestic spectators at venues at next month&#8217;s delayed Games.



Social gatherings with drinking have been a target of government action as they are seen as driving infections by encouraging loud speaking, close contact and lingering at bars.



Australia&#8217;s New South Wales extends mask mandate for Sydney



Australia&#8217;s most populous state, New South Wales (NSW), on Tuesday reported its biggest rise in new locally acquired COVID-19 cases in nearly a week, prompting authorities to extend a mask mandate in Sydney for a week.



Ten new locally acquired cases were reported in NSW on Tuesday, as officials fight to contain a latest cluster of the highly infectious Delta virus variant.



U.S. to ship millions of COVID-19 shots to Latin America, Africa, Asia



The White House laid out a plan on Monday to share 55 million U.S. COVID-19 vaccine doses globally, with roughly 75% of the doses allocated to Latin America and the Caribbean, Asia and Africa.



The plan fulfills President Joe Biden&#8217;s commitment to share 80 million U.S.-made vaccines with countries around the world. The president sketched out his priorities for the first 25 million doses from that pledge earlier this month.



The United States has come under pressure to share more of its vaccine supply with countries that are still struggling with the deadly virus and its variants.



Turkey to further ease coronavirus restrictions from July



Turkey will further relax restrictions imposed to curb the spread of COVID-19 from next month, President Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday after the number of daily coronavirus cases in the country fell to around 5,000.



Lockdowns that had been imposed on Sundays and curfews from 1900 GMT on weekdays would be lifted from July 1, Erdogan said after a government cabinet meeting.



(Compiled by Tom Hogue; Editing by Stephen Coates)

What you need to know about the coronavirus right now

ZURICH, June 21 (Reuters) &#8211; Africa is working with the European Union and other partners to help create regional vaccine manufacturing hubs in South Africa, Senegal and Rwanda, with Nigeria under consideration, World Trade Organization Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said.



&#8220;We have now seen that over-centralization of vaccine production capacity is incompatible with equitable access in a crisis situation,&#8221; Okonjo-Iweala said on Monday during a virtual meeting.



&#8220;Regional production hubs, in tandem with open supply chains, offer a more promising path to preparedness for future health crisis.&#8221; 



(Reporting by John Miller; Editing by Toby Chopra)

Health

WHO says COVID-19 deaths surge 43% week-on-week in Africa

Long COVID? Soon there could be a test to show if you have it

Most fully vaccinated people who get COVID delta infections are asymptomatic, WHO says

Here’s what you need to know about the lambda COVID variant

COVAX aims to deliver 520 mln vaccine doses to Africa this year

WHO urges extreme caution against completely lifting public health measures

Africa to get U.S. COVID shots next week as cases surge

World Bank says will boost COVID-19 vaccine funding to $20 bln

Unequal access to vaccines skews global recovery, says IMF chief economist

African Union wants Covishield approved for EU COVID-19 certificate

IMF says Africa urgently needs vaccines to halt repeated COVID waves

Sub-Saharan Africa: We need to act now.

WHO urges fully vaccinated people to continue to wear masks as delta Covid variant spreads

Delta Covid variant has a new mutation called ‘delta plus’: Here’s what you need to know

Africa CDC says continent not winning against ‘brutal’ COVID-19 pandemic

What you need to know about the coronavirus right now

WTO head says South Africa, Senegal, Rwanda and Nigeria considered as vaccine production hubs

News Tips

Advertise With Us

Health

WHO says COVID-19 deaths surge 43% week-on-week in Africa

Long COVID? Soon there could be a test to show if you have it

Most fully vaccinated people who get COVID delta infections are asymptomatic, WHO says

Here’s what you need to know about the lambda COVID variant

COVAX aims to deliver 520 mln vaccine doses to Africa this year

WHO urges extreme caution against completely lifting public health measures

Africa to get U.S. COVID shots next week as cases surge

World Bank says will boost COVID-19 vaccine funding to $20 bln

Unequal access to vaccines skews global recovery, says IMF chief economist

African Union wants Covishield approved for EU COVID-19 certificate

IMF says Africa urgently needs vaccines to halt repeated COVID waves

Sub-Saharan Africa: We need to act now.

WHO urges fully vaccinated people to continue to wear masks as delta Covid variant spreads

Delta Covid variant has a new mutation called ‘delta plus’: Here’s what you need to know

Africa CDC says continent not winning against ‘brutal’ COVID-19 pandemic

What you need to know about the coronavirus right now

WTO head says South Africa, Senegal, Rwanda and Nigeria considered as vaccine production hubs

News Tips

Advertise With Us

Newsletters