Coronavirus vs. The African Economy

Abstract

This article studies the economic impact of COVID-19 on African states. Although Africa is the land of most adversities and the novel coronavirus is not the first of diseases that this region has dealt with, the economic impact of the global pandemic has surely caused hindrance in the economic growth of African states. These states were demonstrating positive trends in the recent past before the global pandemic brought the world’s economy at standstill and at a critical verge of collapsing. Regional evaluation is conducted on North, West, Central, East, and South African. The trends show that due to the smaller populations and past experiences of dealing with deadly viruses like Ebola, there were not as many cases and deaths in Africa, as were in the rest of the world and especially the Western states. However, the GDPs and annual economic growth rates show a depreciation. This is because the states dependent on oil export, tourism, commercial services, industry, and wholesale and retail trade are severely affected. The demand and supply from the Western states have decreased since they endured the massive impact of the pandemic, oil prices reduced, travel and international trade has been restricted as per virus containment measures, and even the African states themselves have to take protective measures, limiting the day-to-day commercial and economic activities.