WHO sounds alarm on Covid-19 tests in Africa
By Staff Reporter
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Cape Town - Testing for Covid-19 remains low across Africa, the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) regional office said, as it raised concern over steadily increasing cases on the continent over the past two months.
WHO Africa noted that over the past four weeks only eight countries surpassed the critical benchmark of carrying out at least 10 tests per 10 000 population per week.
Testing is crucial to understanding the pandemic trend and guiding response, they said.
Dr Richard Mihigo, the Immunisation and Vaccine Development Programme co-ordinator at WHO Africa, said increased movement and interactions as well as slack observance of public health measures such as physical distancing and wearing of masks are some of the factors behind the upsurge in cases.