Week 15 Oct 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic is not over yet: African countries must not let their guard down. The pandemic continues to spread, with the number of cases surpassing 36 million and more than one million deaths globally. With the notable exception of South Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa appears to have so far escaped the worst of the health crisis. The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a large toll on economic activity in Sub-Saharan Africa, putting a decade of hard-won economic progress at risk. Economic activity in the region is expected to contract by 3.3 percent in 2020, confirming the prediction that Sub-Saharan Africa would suffer its first recession in a quarter-century in 2020.