An Analysis of the COVID-19 Consequences on the Uncertainty Socio-economic Indicators of Sub-Saharan Africa

Gatera Etienne(Pedagogical University of Krakow, ul. Podchorążych 2, 30-084, Kraków, Poland)

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the main sectors of economic development before and the current situation of COVID-19 for Sub-Saharan African countries by demonstrating country experiences, the role of vaccines, and the SSA economy forecast. The study has four main sections, including an introduction, an overview of socioeconomic indicators before the pandemic, methods, results findings, and discussion. The study used mixed methods, including an approach based on secondary data. The quantitative results were analysed using both empirical methods and the researcher’s prior expertise. The analysis of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on SSA countries was based on long-term data collected by several international financial institutions. The research findings demonstrated conclusively that COVID-19 is causing the collapse of the SSA economy, the first economic recession in 25 years, $37-79 billion in lost GDP by 2020, and an export decrease of 10.6%. In education, for example, 64% of primary and 50% of secondary students lack ICT training, 89% (216 million) do not have access to a home computer, and 82% (199 million) do not have an Internet connection missed classes during the COVID-19 period. The agricultural sector in SSA is also impacted by over 239 million hungry people. COVID-19 mass vaccinations and public debt amount to over $154 billion in obligations to get the SSA economy back on its feet with zero tolerance for embezzlement of public funds. These results can be used to make the economies of SSA countries resilient to the current crises and to address some thematic issues, such as the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) in all SSA countries, which will save time and money by getting rid of border taxes. Therefore, policymakers can use the findings to begin formulating plans to address issues like economic development, education, and food insecurity.

Keywords

COVID-19; Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA); Economic recession; Vaccines; Economic forecasts

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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.26549/jsbe.v6i1.15887