COVID-19 deaths in Africa surpass 32,000

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia

The number of fatalities due to the novel coronavirus in Africa has reached 32,625, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said in an update Monday.

At least 1,353,283 people across the continent has so far been confirmed positive for the virus, it said, while 1,090,676 people recovered.

The worst affected of the five geographic regions in the continent is Southern Africa with 703,600 cases and 16,600 deaths, according to the update. At least 615,800 people have recovered from the virus in that region.

North Africa recorded 272,700 cases and West Africa 168,600, while East Africa saw 152,300 cases and Central Africa 56,200.

At least 9,500 people died of the virus in North Africa, 3,000 in East Africa, 2,500 in West Africa and 1,100 in Central Africa.

Meanwhile, Ethiopan Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on Sunday inaugurated a new coronavirus field hospital, which has a capacity to accommodate 200 critical patients.

He also marked the commencement of the commercial production of COVID-19 PCR diagnostic testing kits in Ethiopia as confirmed coronavirus cases in the country exceeded 64,000 mark.

Ethiopia as of Sunday reported 64,301 cases, 1,013 deaths and 24,983 recoveries.

The Horn of Africa country conducted more than 1 million laboratory tests since March.