A spike in Coronavirus infections over the past few weeks overwhelmed North African countries’ intensive care units, fueling outrage with severe oxygen shortages.
Today, however, case numbers are sharply declining, according to figures by AFP.
In Tunisia, after images of intensive care units overwhelmed with Covid patients circulated in July, outrage was sparked in the country with the highest number of deaths per capita in the region.
The latest wave saw more than 55,000 infections at its peak (between July 7 and 13), a weekly figure seven times the current rate. The past seven days however recorded 342 deaths, merely a fifth of the toll in the last week of July.
Accrediting the decline in cases to mass vaccination, head of the Pasteur Institute in Tunis Hechmi Louzir told AFP that up to 60 percent of Tunisia’s population could be fully vaccinated by October.
According to AFP, Tunisia was vaccinating its population faster than any other African country over the past week.
With an official toll of 5,650 deaths, Algeria was set on vaccinating 70 percent of its 43 million-strong population by the end of the year.
Alas, AFP figures show that this week, barely 13 percent of the population received the first vaccine jab, while fewer than 10 percent are double vaccinated.
The country’s number of cases peaked in the last week of July, with over 10,000 infections, but has since plummeted. Deaths are also on a decline, according to AFP, as last week saw 132, compared to 268 during the first week of August.
Libya, like its neighbors, has reported a peak in infections followed by a sharp decline in recent weeks.
As state institutions attempt to rebuild after a decade-long war, the country has officially reported 4,500 Covid related deaths among its seven million population.
During the last week of July, Libya recorded 24,000 new cases and 204 deaths, but the past week only saw a third of the number of infections and 83 deaths.
While Libya’s vaccination campaign got off to a slow start, a number of vaccination centers began to open across the country. An AFP tally shows that just over 18% of Libyans have received the first jab.
Similar to its neighbors, Morocco was not spared the latest spike in Covid-19 infections and deaths.
Morocco has recorded a total of 13,800 Covid related deaths in its population of around 36 million people.
The country recorded a surge of infections after curfew was eased and borders reopened to travelers in June. This allowed Moroccans in European countries hard-hit by the Delta variant to return home for the holidays.
Cases then began to spiral, as Morocco recorded some 70,000 new infections over one week early in August. Authorities imposed a new curfew and restrictions on movement and gatherings.
While infections were down for a fifth straight week, health ministry official Abdelkrim Meziane Bellefquih did warn that critical cases and deaths continue to be recorded at high rates.
Morocco, however, is way ahead of its neighbors in terms of vaccination.
The kingdom has administered more than 37 million vaccine doses, with over 46.7 percent of the population fully inoculated.
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