According to the Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC) of the African Union, which reports data recorded up to 09.30 am from Addis Ababa, there are 3,243 cases of infection and 83 deaths in 46 countries on the continent.
Add to this the first two deaths of Covid-19 patients registered in South Africa, which this Friday exceeded the barrier of 1,000 confirmed cases of the disease.
Covid-19 deaths in 17 African countries: Algeria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Mauritius, Morocco, Nigeria, Sudan, Tunisia, Zimbabwe, Cape Verde, Niger, Kenya.
According to the same source, the continent still has 254 recovered patients, a figure that brings the total number of active infections down to 2,989.
North Africa is the region with the most cases and deaths associated with the disease, accounting for 1,249 infections, 60 deaths and 216 recovered patients.
In this region, Egypt (495 confirmed cases) and Algeria (302 confirmed cases) account for 24 and 21 deaths, respectively, concentrating the highest numbers of fatal cases across the continent.
Southern Africa is followed by Angola and Mozambique, with 1,045 cases, mostly concentrated in South Africa (over 1,000) and two deaths.
West Africa, where Cape Verde and Guinea Bissau are located, has 605 cases and 11 deaths.
The region with the fewest cases is Central Africa, which accounts for 170 cases and seven deaths by Covid-19.
Eastern African countries account for 247 cases and four deaths.
South Africa remains the country with the highest number of cumulative cases of infection in Africa (over 1,000), and two deaths.
Morocco (275) Tunisia (173), Burkina Faso (152) Senegal (105) and Nigeria (65) are other countries with significant numbers of infections.
In Lusophone countries, Angola has four confirmed cases of new coronavirus infection, Cape Verde has five and one death, Mozambique has confirmed seven and Guinea-Bissau two.
In Equatorial Guinea, which is part of the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries, the government has confirmed 11 positive cases of new coronavirus infection.
Overall, the data indicates that around 500 new cases of new coronavirus infection have been reported, with a further 12 deaths.
The infected population in Africa is mostly male (65 per cent), is on average 45 years old and the detection of patients, through travel history, took on average 5.6 days.
Africa CDC reported this Friday that of the 55 member countries and territories of the African Union, 24 have decreed the total closure of borders, 10 have suspended international flights and 14 have imposed restrictions on travel or entry of foreigners from certain countries.
Most member states have decreed mandatory quarantine for travellers from countries at risk.
The new coronavirus, responsible for the Covid-19 pandemic, has already infected some 540,000 people worldwide, of whom nearly 25,000 have died.
After it broke out in China in December, the outbreak spread around the world, leading the World Health Organization (WHO) to declare a pandemic situation.
