Addis Ababa, January 21: COVID-19 death rate in the continent of Africa has surpassed the global fatality rate due to coronavirus on Thursday, John Nkengasong, the head of Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) told reporters. The current COVID-19 death rate in Africa stands at 2.5 per cent while the global death rate is 2.2 per cent. The rise in trend has alarmed the medical experts in the continent. New COVID-19 Variant Appears to Emerge in Nigeria, Says South Africa CDC.

"Earlier in the pandemic, Africa’s death rate had been below the global average. The case fatality rate is beginning to be very worrying and concerning for all of us.” said Nkengasong. "The number of African nations with a death rate higher than the current global average is growing," he added. As per reports, around 21 African countries including Egypt, Congo and Sudan, have a fatality rate of more than 3 per cent. Current Vaccines Will Protect Against New COVID-19 Strains Found in UK and South Africa: Govt.

During the last week, the COVID-19 cases in the continent decreased by 7 per cent. However, the total deaths increased by 10 per cent, as per to Africa CDC data.Africa reported 2,07,000 new COVID-19 cases in last one week. South Africa reported the largest share of 1,00,000 fresh coronavirus cases. So far, the content has has recorded 3.3 Million COVID-19 cases and 81,000.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jan 21, 2021 05:32 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).