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On the socio-economic impact of pandemics in Africa - Lessons learned from COVID-19, Trypanosomiasis, HIV, Yellow Fever and Cholera

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  • Kohnert, Dirk

    (GIGA - German Institute of Global and Area Studies, Hamburg)

Abstract

ABSTRACT & RÉSUMÉ : Throughout history, nothing has killed more human beings than infectious diseases. Although, death rates from pandemics dropped globally by about 0.8 % per year, all the way through the 20th century, the number of new infectious diseases like Sars, HIV and Covid-19 increased by nearly fourfold over the past century. In Africa, there were reported a total of 4,522,489 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 119,816 death, as of 23 April 2021. The pandemic impacted seriously on the economic and social sectors in almost all African countries. It is threatening to push up to 58 m people into extreme poverty. However, apart from the African poor, the Covid pandemic also affects the growing African middle class, i.e. about 170 million out of Africa’s 1.3 billion people currently classified as middle class. Nearly eight million of may be thrust into poverty because of the coronavirus and its economic aftermath. This setback will be felt for decades to come. Moreover, in recent African History also other infectouse diseases like the 1896–1906 Congo Basin Trypanosomiasis with a death-toll of over 500.000 as well as the 1900–1920 Uganda African trypanosomiasis epidemic with 200,000–300,000 death had tremendous negative impact on Africa’s societies and economies. Actually, other pandemics, like Yellow Fever, Cholera, Meningitis and Measles – not to mention Malaria - contributed to long-lasting economic downturns and seriously affect the social wellbeing for decades. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- RÉSUMÉ : Au cours de l’histoire, rien n’a tué plus d’êtres humains que les maladies infectieuses et la fièvre hémorragique. Bien que les taux de mortalité dus aux pandémies aient chuté de près de 1% par an dans le monde, environ 0,8% par an, tout au long du XXe siècle, le nombre de nouvelles maladies infectieuses comme le Sars, le VIH et le Covid-19 a presque quadruplé par rapport au passé. En Afrique, on a signalé un total de 4 522 489 cas confirmés de COVID-19 et 119 816 décès, au 23 avril 2021. La pandémie a eu de graves répercussions sur les secteurs économique et social dans presque tous les pays africains. Il menace de pousser jusqu'à 58 millions de personnes dans l'extrême pauvreté. Cependant, outre les Africains pauvres, la pandémie de Covid affecte également la classe moyenne africaine en pleine croissance, c'est-à-dire environ 170 millions sur les 1,3 milliard d'africains actuellement classés dans la classe moyenne. Près de huit millions d'entre eux pourraient être plongés dans la pauvreté à cause du coronavirus et de ses conséquences économiques. Ce revers se fera sentir pendant des décennies. En outre, dans l'histoire récente de l'Afrique, d'autres maladies infectieuses comme la trypanosomiase du bassin du Congo de 189 … View full abstract

Suggested Citation

  • Kohnert, Dirk, 2021. "On the socio-economic impact of pandemics in Africa - Lessons learned from COVID-19, Trypanosomiasis, HIV, Yellow Fever and Cholera," AfricArxiv 58myz, Center for Open Science.
  • Handle: RePEc:osf:africa:58myz
    DOI: 10.31219/osf.io/58myz
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    1. Ozili, Peterson K, 2020. "COVID-19 in Africa: socioeconomic impact, policy response and opportunities," MPRA Paper 99617, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    2. Leach, Melissa & MacGregor, Hayley & Scoones, Ian & Wilkinson, Annie, 2021. "Post-pandemic transformations: How and why COVID-19 requires us to rethink development," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 138(C).
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    Cited by:

    1. Kohnert, Dirk, 2022. "L'impact d'une récession européenne déclenchée par la crise énergétique sur l'Afrique subsaharienne [The impact of the energy-induced EU recession on Sub-Saharan Africa]," MPRA Paper 114052, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    2. Kohnert, Dirk, 2022. "The impact of the energy-induced EU recession on Sub-Saharan Africa," MPRA Paper 114051, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    3. Kohnert, Dirk, 2022. "Éthique des machines et identités africaines: Perspectives de l'intelligence artificielle en Afrique [Machine ethics and African identities: Perspectives of artificial intelligence in Africa]," MPRA Paper 113800, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. Kohnert, Dirk, 2022. "Machine ethics and African identities: Perspectives of artificial intelligence in Africa," MPRA Paper 113799, University Library of Munich, Germany.

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    JEL classification:

    • D63 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement
    • D74 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Conflict; Conflict Resolution; Alliances; Revolutions
    • E24 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital; Aggregate Labor Productivity
    • E26 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Informal Economy; Underground Economy
    • F15 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Economic Integration
    • F22 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - International Migration
    • F35 - International Economics - - International Finance - - - Foreign Aid
    • F52 - International Economics - - International Relations, National Security, and International Political Economy - - - National Security; Economic Nationalism
    • F54 - International Economics - - International Relations, National Security, and International Political Economy - - - Colonialism; Imperialism; Postcolonialism
    • H12 - Public Economics - - Structure and Scope of Government - - - Crisis Management

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