State of the EAC Health Sector Amidst the COVID-19 Crisis
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Date
2021-10-25
Authors
Bigirimana, Noella
Rwagasore, Edson
Condo, Jeanine
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
African Economic Research Consortium
Abstract
On 11 March 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the ongoing
COVID-19 outbreak as a global pandemic with recommendations for countries to
take appropriate measures to eliminate virus spread. As the pandemic continues to
evolve, an estimated 156,496,592 confirmed cases and 3,264,143 deaths have been
reported in more than 220 countries and territories (WHO, 2021).
The COVID-19 disease caused by SARS-CoV-2 virus is highly transmissible from
person to person, with a reproduction number, Ro, (number of additional cases
resulting from initial case) estimated between 1.6 and 2.4 (Aylward & Liang, 2020). The
COVID-19 burden has been asymmetrically distributed, with the Americas accounting
for the greatest proportion of reported new cases, followed by Europe, South-East
Asia, and Eastern Mediterranean. Africa and Western Pacific are the least affected
regions (Aylward & Liang, 2020).
The East African region has crossed the first year since the first cases were reported
in March 2020. The region has recorded an estimated 7.3% of the cases and 4.4% of
deaths reported in Africa. As of 8 May 2021, there were 246,427 confirmed COVID-19
cases across EAC countries, and among them 54,278 (22%) were active cases. There
were 3,709 reported deaths in the region (EAC, 2021).
Based on available records, Kenya has recorded the highest number of confirmed
COVID-19 cases in the EAC region at 163,238 (66.2%), followed by Uganda at 42,308
(17.1%), Rwanda at 25,586 (10.4%), South Sudan at 10,637 (4.3%), and Burundi at
4,149 (1.7%). Tanzania’s last report on 29 April 2020 indicated 509 confirmed COVID-19
cases and 21 deaths (EAC, 2021). These moderately low numbers, compared to other
regions, could be partially attributed to Africa’s young population age structure,
potentially underreporting of events and low testing rates. Another factor, however,
is the containment measures adopted by several EAC member states in order to
mitigate the spread. The first case in the East African region was reported on 13 March
2020 in Kenya, followed by initial case reports in other EAC states the same week. The
approach by most countries was to put in place enhanced measures to flatten the
curve of COVID-19 transmission, including lockdown restrictions, immediate isolation
of confirmed cases, quarantining close contacts of confirmed cases, contact tracing,
quarantining travellers, mandatory use of face masks, and expanding testing and
treatment capacities. As the virus continued to spread, EAC countries took different
approaches to reducing the incidence of the pandemic.