COVID-19 was expected to devastate the Lake Chad Basin. When the pandemic broke out, the region was already in crisis, with about 11 million people needing humanitarian aid due to the havoc wrought by Boko Haram. This compounded governance problems, lack of access to quality healthcare, depleted health infrastructure and other socio-economic factors.
By mid-January, Institute for Security Studies data showed that the eight Boko Haram-affected regions stretching over the four Lake Chad Basin countries had a combined figure of 8,188 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 191 deaths since the outbreak. However, the impact of the pandemic has been felt more in people’s pockets due to the restrictions initiated to rein in the virus. Sub-Saharan Africa witnessed its first recession in 25 years in 2020, with 40 million people sliding into extreme poverty.
Even measures aimed at easing the effect of lockdowns, like cash transfers and moratoriums on loan repayments, weren’t enough. Instead, they were marred by allegations of corruption by state officials, which further undermined trust in the authorities. The situation is even worse in Chad, where full vaccination stands at 0.7 per cent, although the country has the lowest number of confirmed cases in the region. With 4.2 per cent of people fully vaccinated, Niger has the highest vaccination record of this group of countries, perhaps because Nigeriens have more trust in the vaccine than people in the other states.
Cameroon, Chad and Nigeria also need to build trust in the vaccine, as has been the case in Niger. The right messaging should be aimed at local gatekeepers like community leaders, both traditional and religious. According to a 2021 Afrobarometer survey, Africans trust traditional leaders more than political leaders.
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