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As the world grapples with the unprecedented global health crisis posed by COVID-19 scourge, the United Nations is establishing a digital hub to house information and knowledge resources to assist crucial development system partners in fighting the disease in Africa.
The region’s fragile health systems and economic costs could derail the socio-economic development trajectory of the global Sustainable Development Goals and the regional Agenda 2063 aspirations.
The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) projects that the continent’s GDP growth would decrease by almost half to 1.8 per cent.
In the region, COVID-19 is already disrupting millions of people’s livelihoods with disproportionate impact on poor households as well as small and informal businesses.
Director of the Africa Centre for Statistics, Oliver Chinganya, said evidenced-based information and data from credible sources will be key not only to inform about the pestilence but also to aid the decision-making processes of governments.
He urged UN agencies and development partners to save lives and economies, adding that the Africa Knowledge Hub for COVID19 would be open to all users.
The facility, which would be updated regularly, could be accessed at: https://knowledge.uneca.org/covid19/.
