Coronavirus: Africa facing the pandemic on Monday, August 10

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Africa had this Monday, August 10, 1,047,049 confirmed cases of coronavirus. The pandemic has already claimed the lives of 23,258 people on the continent, according to the World Health Organization (WHO) regional office for Africa.

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The countries most affected by the Covid-19 pandemic are South Africa, with 559,859 cases including 10,408 deaths, Egypt, with 95,492 cases including 5,009 deaths, Nigeria, with 46,577 cases including 945 death, Ghana, with 41,003 including 215 deaths, or Algeria, with 35,214 cases including 1,302 deaths.

South Africa passes 10,000 dead mark

More than 10,000 people have died after being infected with Covid-19 the South African Ministry of Health announced on Saturday.

South Africa has confirmed a total of 559,859 cases of contamination since the arrival of the pandemic in the country, more than half of those seen across the continent. South Africa remains the 5th country with the highest number of Covid-19 cases in the world.

According to the Minister of Health Zweli Mkhize, the health authorities identified 301 new deaths due to the virus during the day of August 8

More than half of the new deaths seen on Saturday were in KwaZulu-Natal province, in the southeast of the country. "  The peak (of the epidemic) is here, where we are, " Mkhize said on Saturday while visiting a hospital in that province.

As of today, the total number of confirmed # COVID19 cases is 559 858, the total number of deaths is 10 408 and the total number of recoveries is 411 147. pic.twitter.com/vi5OiJzMTB

Malawi imposes new restrictions

Malawi has decided to impose the wearing of masks in public spaces, to close bars and religious centers due to an " alarming  " increase  in coronavirus cases in the country. All public gatherings of more than ten people are now banned, according to new restrictions issued by the Justice Department. An exception concerns burials, where up to 50 people will be allowed.

"  An army of controllers have been hired  " to enforce these new instructions, underlined Justice Minister Chikosa Silungwe.

Since the appearance of the first case of coronavirus on April 2, the number of confirmed cases has almost doubled in the past four weeks, reaching a total of 4,658 on August 8, for 146 deaths. A confinement declared in early April by the government was immediately blocked in court because it did not include compensatory measures in favor of the most disadvantaged.

Today's update. @MalawiUNICEF @unimacom @amizere @AfricaCDC # COVID19 pic.twitter.com/6wcAbtCBxe

DRC: resumption of classes, but not in the province of South Kivu

Schoolchildren and students have partly returned to school in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Monday. The start of the school year only concerns students in the last years of primary and secondary school, as well as those in fifth year at university.

Schools and universities in the DRC were closed on March 24 by decision of Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi as part of the "state of health emergency" declared in the face of the first cases of coronavirus in the DRC. With the end of the state of emergency announced on July 21, the resumption of classes was scheduled for August 10.

But no resumption of classes on Monday in the province of South Kivu in eastern DRC. In the morning, the students found themselves alone in their schools. The teachers organized a march in Bukavu to demand the payment of their previously non-mechanized colleagues, the improvement of their salaries according to the so-called “Bibwa” protocol and the abolition of wage zones. 

The police dispersed the demonstrators who arrived at the town hall of Bukavu by firing tear gas canisters. At least 2 teachers were seriously injured.

Nigeria: Lagos reopens its mosques and churches

After more than five months, places of worship were allowed to reopen in the city of Lagos, Nigeria on Friday. 

After months of prayers at home, the faithful can now visit mosques and churches in Lagos. Last week, Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu announced the relaxation of some containment measures put in place in March to combat the spread of the new coronavirus.

Economic capital of 20 million people, Lagos is the epicenter of the epidemic in Nigeria, which killed nearly a thousand in early August, according to official figures

International airports and schools remain closed, the night curfew is maintained and family gatherings restricted to 50 people.

New restrictive measures in Senegal in the face of the increase in cases

In Senegal, the relaxation of respect for barrier gestures against the coronavirus is in the sights of the State.

After the state of emergency was lifted on June 29, new security measures were reinstalled on Friday, such as the wearing of compulsory masks, the ban on gatherings at beaches or sports grounds, and the ban on any demonstration on the public highway. Body lifting ceremonies, considered places of spread of the disease because of the crowds they draw, are thus banned.

These "  decisions with immediate effect  " were announced by the Minister of the Interior, Aly Ngouye Ndiaye, during a press conference in Dakar. Violators face fines and prison terms, he said.

Following the instructions of the President of the Republic, I would like to bring to your attention, the taking of the following measures, with immediate effect # covid19 # covid19sn pic.twitter.com/r3UT3s1vfY

The authorities claim to have observed "a relaxation of populations" in the application of measures against the new coronavirus. The country had lifted the curfew and state of emergency at the end of June and international flights resumed on July 15 despite the increase in the number of cases. Land borders still remain closed. Senegal has declared 11,175 cases of COVID 19 since March 2, including 232 deaths.

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• Coronavirus
• South Africa
• Malawi
• DRC
• Nigeria
• Senegal