WHO says Africa COVID cases could be seven times higher than reported

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FILE PHOTO: Hospital staff treat a patient suffering from the coronavirus disease in the acute care unit of the University Hospital (HUG) as Switzerland enters a second wave of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Geneva, Switzerland, October 27, 2020. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse

The World Health Organization estimates that the number of COVID-19 infections in Africa could be seven times higher than official data suggests, while deaths from the virus could be two to three times higher, its regional head said on Thursday.

“We’re very much aware that our surveillance systems problems that we had on the continent, with access to testing supplies, for example, have led to an underestimation of the cases,” Dr Matshidiso Moeti told a regular online media briefing.