Coronavirus could kill up to 190,000 in Africa in first year if not contained -WHO

A woman wears a face mask, due to the global coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, as she walks along a busy shopping street in Dakar, Senegal [Photo:Courtesy]

The novel coronavirus could kill between 83,000 and 190,000 people in Africa in the first year and infect between 29 million and 44 million in the first year if it is not contained, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday.

The projections are contained in a new WHO Africa study based on assumptions that no containment measures are put in place, which has fortunately not been the case, WHO Africa head Matshidiso Moeti told reporters in a teleconference.