COVID-19 - The African Mirror

Dec

2020

COVID-19 immunity and reinfection: why it’s still essential to take precautions

WITH some viruses, once you have been infected and have developed antibodies, you will be immune to that virus for life. Past infection with the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which causes COVID-19, does not, as far as is known at this stage, guarantee protection against future infections. It’s not absolutely clear whether this virus may become dormant and, upon reactivation, cause a recurrence of infection. Caroline Southey, editor of The Conversation Africa, asked Sehaam Khan and Saurabh Sinha to explain. SEHAAM KHAN, Professor (Microbiology & Molecular Virology) and Executive Dean: Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Johannesburg, University of Johannesburg SAURABH SINHA,…

Dec

2020

By The African Mirror

COVID-19 doesn’t stop gay Imam’s quest for inclusion and education across Africa

NEWS

KIM HARRISBERG IT’S hard to pull up a chair and talk sex or fly imams over closed borders for gender training in a pandemic. But Imam Muhsin Hendricks wasn't about to let COVID-19 destroy his carefully crafted Islamic training programme - he'd faced down too much else in his 53 years. One of the first imams to come out as gay, Hendricks is a pioneer, known continent-wide for pursuing dialogue with fellow Muslim leaders about a topic many don't want to discuss. Same-sex relations remain a taboo across much of Africa and in much of the Muslim world. Seeking to…

Dec

2020

By The African Mirror

Invisible crimes like human trafficking rise during COVID-19

HUMAN RIGHTS

VILIANT RICHEY WHEN the violence she was suffering at home escalated during the lockdown, Maria (not her real name) decided to make the gut-wrenching decision to leave. But instead of finding freedom, she ended up in the hands of traffickers, isolated and with no documents, in a factory of a foreign country. This case, recently reported to my team by a Ukrainian NGO, is but one example of the hidden consequences that COVID-19 has had on human trafficking. Since the outbreak of the pandemic and the worldwide onset of lockdown measures, numerous countries reported a sharp decline in ‘traditional' crimes…

Dec

2020

By The African Mirror

Congo to impose curfew against second wave of coronavirus

COVID-19

STANIS BUJAKERA THE Democratic Republic of Congo will impose a curfew and other strict measures, including the mandatory wearing of masks in public spaces, to fight a second wave of the coronavirus, its virus response team said on Wednesday. The mining industry in the world's leading producer of cobalt and Africa's biggest copper producer will not be affected by the new measures. Congo has recorded 14,942 cases of coronavirus and 364 deaths since the epidemic was officially declared in March. But it has seen a steady increase in recent weeks, with 345 new cases declared on Wednesday, mostly in the…

Dec

2020

By The African Mirror

COVID-19: How to reduce risk in the holiday season

HEALTH

DOYIN ODUBANJO, Executive Secretary, Nigerian Academy of Science DURING the festive season, travel and gatherings are sometimes unavoidable, even in a global pandemic. Dr Doyin Odubanjo, Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Academy of Science and a past chairman of the Association of Public Health Physicians of Nigeria, shares five tips for a safe Christmas during COVID-19. In this video interview, the public health physician explains the “3 Cs” people should avoid in order to reduce the risk of spreading COVID-19. They are: crowds, close contact and confined spaces. - The Conversation https://www.youtube.com/embed/lHG_b-g5RgM Keeping safe during Christmas to prevent COVID-19.

Dec

2020

By The African Mirror

How COVID-19 upended informal workers worldwide

COVID-19

JOHN SURICO ABOUT half of the wage earners in Colombia found themselves in the informal economy last year—working unregulated jobs with flexibility, but also, minimal social protection. Yet although rates have steadily declined, informality has remained a weakness. “Before the pandemic, we were in a fragile situation, economically,” says Mauricio Quiñones Domínguez, a Medellín-based economist. Then COVID-19 hit. The hard-hit country, previously strapped with one of the highest unemployment rates in Latin America, has seen joblessness soar to an unprecedented 21.2% (It now hovers around 16%, although ‘real’ unemployment could be higher.) Informality is expected to follow, reversing years’ worth…

Dec

2020

By The African Mirror

Where COVID-19 has left Nigeria’s health system

HEALTH

OVER nine months into COVID-19 outbreak in Nigeria, there are concerns about how well the country has managed the pandemic. Adejuwon Soyinka, from The Conversation Africa, asked Dr Doyin Odubanjo, executive secretary of the Nigerian Academy of Science, to assess the situation and how it might affect the country’s ability to manage other equally important diseases. DOYIN ODUBANJO, Executive Secretary, Nigerian Academy of Science Where does Nigeria stand as far as COVID-19 is concerned at the moment? I would say we are in the wilderness. Basically we don’t know where we are. I think the only thing that everybody agrees…

Dec

2020

By The African Mirror

Traffickers, smugglers exploiting COVID-19, Interpol warns after global crackdown

WORLD

KIERAN GUILBERT DOZENS of suspected victims of human trafficking were rescued and more than 200 people arrested in a global crackdown on smuggling and trafficking networks, Interpol has announced. The recent week-long operation involved authorities from 32 nations across several continents and led to the identification of 3,500 irregular migrants, the global police agency said. About 100 potential trafficking victims were found and helped in Brazil, Chile, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Spain and Uruguay as part of Operation Turquesa II, Interpol said. The operation highlighted how the coronavirus pandemic has left a rising number of people vulnerable to trafficking worldwide,…

Dec

2020

By The African Mirror

Brazil rolls out COVID-19 vaccination plan

WORLD

SABRINA VALLE THE Brazilian government has unveiled its long-awaited national vaccination plan against COVID-19 with an initial goal of vaccinating 51 million people, or about one-fourth of the population, in the first half of 2021. In a document sent to the Supreme Court, which had given the government a deadline to draw up the plan, the Health Ministry said 108 million doses will be available for priority vaccination of vulnerable groups that include health workers, elderly people and indigenous communities. The plan says 70% of the population - or about 148 million of Brazil's 212 million people - need to…

Dec

2020

By The African Mirror

One year on, Wuhan market at epicentre of virus outbreak remains barricaded, empty

COVID-19

CATE CADELL FOR over six years, 38-year-old Wuhan restaurant owner Lai Yun started most days the same way - with a trip to the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market, just ten minutes walk from his house. "I'd send the kids to school, have breakfast and then walk over to the market. It was very convenient," he said. That changed on Dec. 31, 2019, after four cases of a mystery pneumonia were linked to the market and it was shuttered overnight. By the end of the month, the city had begun a gruelling 76-day lockdown that came with just hours notice and…