As the world looks back on one full year of living in the COVID-19 pandemic, the response is still far from over. With only 41 million tests conducted in Africa since the start of the pandemic, and 28,030 tests conducted per million people (well below the Africa CDC-recommended optimal testing level of 75,000 tests per million people), there is an urgent need for African Union (AU) member states to scale-up testing. In spite of disruptions in the global supply chain for COVID-19 tools, including diagnostics, there has been a slow but steady increase in testing. However, the continent needs a rapid scale up of testing for better epidemiological management of the pandemic in order to keep economies open and save lives. Without sufficient testing, we are fighting the pandemic blindly.
Africa CDC and Partners Working Group on Testing, of which Pandemic Action Network is a member, has developed a letter signed by Center for Global Health Security and Diplomacy, FIND Diagnostics, PSI, Right to Health Action, and WACI Health, and three advocacy networks each composed of 100+ members (Pandemic Action Network, Global Fund Advocacy Network, and Treatment Action Group).
The call-to-action is directed to African Ministers of Health urging them to:
- Order quality-assured antigen tests
- Ensure sufficient budget for procurement of antigen tests and testing this fiscal year
- Ensure sufficient budget for procurement of lower-priced PCR tests for COVID-19 and other diseases including TB, HIV, and Hepatitis C
Read the call-to-action letter here and contact [email protected] to take part in the advocacy efforts with AU leaders.
