POVERTY, CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC AND NEW FRAMEWORK OF STATEHOOD IN AFRICA

Resumo

This paper addressed itself to the power deficit of statehood in Africa, against the containment of the Coronavirus pandemic. To illuminate a true picture of Africa’s absorptive capacity for transnational health pandemic challenges such as the ongoing coronavirus (COVID 19), three countries of Africa (Egypt, South Africa, and Nigeria) were examined. These three countries have usually been regarded as sub-regional powers of the African continent. The analysis of the paper proceeded with two assumptions, that: 1) poverty imposes constraints on African countries’ response to global pandemics; and 2), African countries require new frameworks of statehood in view of the cascading damage inflicted by global pandemics on the African population and economies. Using content analysis, results from secondary sources of data collated the analysis revealed that Africa is seriously deficient in empirical knowledge, skills and techniques to contain the coronavirus and such other previous health challenges such as Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). The World Health Organization’s Joint External Evaluation (JEE) Report for instance scored African countries low over the COVID 19 pandemic containment. The paper also found that in spite of well-established basic disease surveillance in some African countries, they lacked necessary infrastructure such as Premature Ventricular Contraction (PVC) Kits for the containment of the virus. Finally, the paper accentuates the need for Africa to encourage research on Africa’s rich natural environment to promote empirical visions and praxis on herbal medicines production, and to develop economic and political strengths to autonomise positive scientific outcomes. The case of Tanzania where herbal solutions were produced for the management of Coronavirus, but jettisoned by international political propaganda is not helpful for Africa. It also became abundantly clear that Africa would need, apart from research and development, an integrated approach to global pandemics, technological innovations, and citizen diplomacy as a new framework of statehood.