🌍Pandemic Preparedness

What does a premature baby and Africa have in common? Neither will appreciate having their bubble burst.

These were not the exact words however of former Liberian President, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf who as chair of the Independent Panel of Experts on Pandemic Response concluded that the global stage and Africa in particular was not ready for another pandemic.

In 2021, the panel published and submitted recommendations to the WHO for use by its member countries in strengthening their healthcare systems to equip them better to handle future pandemics. Safe to say African governments missed that email.

Post-COVID Africa

While accounting for only 19,000 (3%) out of the 7 million COVID-19 deaths reported globally, Africa has not been as lucky with other smaller-scale outbreaks that have been more recent.

1. For one, the continent is currently battling what appears to be a Cholera pandemic with a death toll edging closer to the 300,000 mark.

2. Congo DRC and South Africa are currently experiencing a resurgence of Monkeypox (Mpox) with Congo DRC reporting a death toll of close to 400 people in 6 months.

3. In Nigeria alone, the number of notified cases of Tuberculosis has doubled from 106,000 in 2018 to 285,000 in 2022.

What do Africans think? It depends on who you’re asking the question to. A survey conducted across 39 different African countries reported that 1 out of 2 people felt their government did a good job handling the pandemic and would do even better in the event of another.

If you ask the CEO of Afrigen Biologics (a vaccine manufacturer), he’ll tell you that the governments aren’t doing nearly enough- which translates to ‘the governments aren’t buying enough vaccines in LLC parlance- to prevent further pandemics.

Anyways, if you’re wondering where to run to in the event of another pandemic, Rwanda just secured a $120 million loan to boost its pandemic preparedness. We hope you’ll be giving us a 5-star rating on TripAdvisor.