COVID-19 and Africa: On-the-Ground Perspectives from Five African Countries

While COVID-19 has rapidly spread across the globe, Africa was among the last regions to be reached by the virus. The first case of COVID-19 was reported in Egypt on February 14, 2020. Today, COVID-19 is expanding across the continent with more than 7,000 reported cases as of the beginning of April (BBC Coronavirus in Africa). As in other parts of the world, the pandemic has upended the lives of millions on the continent, while raising questions about the continent’s ability to manage the pandemic and concerns about both the short and long-term socio-economic, peace, and security impacts of the virus. Please join us as we bring you perspectives from five African countries—South Africa, Libya, Ethiopia, the DRC, and Côte d'Ivoire—to learn how COVID-19 is unfolding in these countries, how the governments and the people are responding, and what the impact and challenges have been so far. We will also look ahead to COVID-19’s likely impact on peace, security, and development in these countries in the coming years.