Coronavirus: ECA estimates Africa has lost about US$ $65 billion in revenues so far
- The Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) has projected that Africa has lost about $65 billion in crude oil revenue
- Its Executive Secretary, Vera Songwe, noted that the effects of the coronavirus on Africa's growth plan could be dangerous
- She added that the coronavirus was already affecting China's trade relations with Africa
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The Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), has estimated that Africa has lost about $65 billion in revenue since the outbreak of the coronavirus.
On Friday, March 13, 2020, the ECA explained that the crisis could negatively affect Africa’s growth plan which is already stagnant.
At a press conference in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, it added that oil-exporting nations are losing revenue as crude oil prices continue to tumble.
Source: UGC
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The Executive Secretary of the Commission, Vera Songwe, explained that the effects of the coronavirus on China were negatively affecting trade with Africa.
She added that the blow is severe even though few cases have been reported on the continent since the epidemic started.
Myjoyonline.com reports that she said there is the likelihood of a loss of almost half of Africa’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) due to reasons such as the disruption of global supply chains.
Songwe went on to say that Africa is connected with several affected economies and the effect is devastating.
According to her, Africa is in need of about $10.6 billion to foot health bills in order to stop the virus from spreading.
Losses in revenue, she explained, could also lead to unsustainable debt.
Songwe noted that the coronavirus is likely to reduce total crude oil exports from Nigeria from $19 billion to about $14 billion.
The ECA has further projected that the coronavirus could lead to a fall in Africa’s export revenues by about US$ 101 billion in 2020.
Meanwhile, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Exim Bank, Lawrence Agyinsam, has called on the government to implement measures that would lead to increased manufacturing of goods.
According to him, the extent to which the coronavirus has affected trading activities in Ghana should be a wakeup call.
He explained that Ghana heavily relies on imports from China and the country has experienced a downturn in its business activities.
READ ALSO: African Innovation Hub helps United Kingdom develop 10-minute coronavirus test
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Source: YEN.com.gh
