Coronavirus Africa summary: cases, deaths and news - 31 May
Coronavirus live Africa: latest Covid-19 news - 31 May
Africa Covid-19 update: 01:30 WAT / 02:30 CEST on Monday 1 June
According to the latest figures published by Johns Hopkins University, 6,152,160 cases have been detected worldwide, with 371,700 deaths and 2,637,496 people now recovered.
Nigeria: 9,855 cases / 273 deaths
South Africa: 32,683 cases / 683 deaths
Ghana: 7,881 cases / 36 deaths
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Armed bandits kill at least 18 in Nigeria's Katsina state
Armed bandits in Nigeria's northwestern state of Katsina killed at least 18 people, including a local official, and stole thousands of livestock on Sunday, two witnesses and a police spokesman claimed. The eyewitnesses said as many as 500 men riding motorcycles, some brandishing assault rifles, charged into the Faskari local government area on Sunday afternoon.
"At least 18 person were confirmed killed by now and many others were suspected to be killed," local resident Isma'ila Ya'u told reporters.
The men went on to the nearby village of Sabon Garin where they killed local leader Abdulhamid Sani, 55, after attempting to kidnap him, the witnesses and a police spokesman said.
Sadiq Hasaan, another witness, said the men were headed with the stolen livestock towards other villages in the Batsari local government area, and thousands of residents had fled their homes.
Egypt tweaks curfew hours as coronavirus cases surge
Egypt shortened a night curfew by one hour on Sunday as it recorded new highs in the daily increases in novel coronavirus cases and deaths.
The Health Ministry said 1,536 new cases had been confirmed including 46 deaths, bringing total cases to 24,985 and deaths to 959.
Earlier, the prime minister's office said a night curfew would end at 5 a.m. instead of 6 a.m. The curfew begins at 8 p.m., though its start had been brought forward to 5 p.m. last week during the holiday that follows the Eid holiday at the end of Ramadan.
The curfew is one of a number of measures including the closure of schools, cafes and places of worship, that are aimed at curbing the pandemic.
Namibia shuts harbour town airport after two coronavirus infections
The airport in the Namibian harbour town of Walvis Bay has closed after two residents tested positive for the coronavirus and the economic hub went into lockdown.
The airport would be closed for seven days, manager Chrizelda George told media on Sunday.
A third Walvis Bay resident, a colleague of one of the patients, has since tested positive, bringing the total infections nationwide to just 24 with no deaths.
Other airports in the country will still allow domestic flights as scheduled and for emergency evacuations.
Namibia's flag carrier, Air Namibia, has also suspended all flights in and out of Walvis Bay until June 8.
Most of the desert nation in southwest Africa, which has received international praise after recording so few cases, will ease restrictions from Tuesday.
Rwanda reports first coronavirus death
Rwanda's ministry of health on Sunday reported the East African nation's first death caused by the coronavirus.
The victim was a 65-year-old driver who opted to return home from a neighbouring country, where he resided, after falling severely ill, the ministry said in a statement.
He passed away from severe respiratory complications while receiving treatment at a specialised Covid-19 treatment facility. (Reuters)
Kenyans embrace voluntary testing scheme
Kenya has tripled the number of tests its is carrying out as people in the country heed government calls to take part in a voluntary coronavirus testing scheme.
What SA can teach the rest of Africa
The BBC has looked at eight ways that the rest of the continent can learn from South Africa as other countries prepare for a spike in infections:
Robots support medical workers in Rwanda
In Rwanda, robots are being used for tasks such as taking temperatures to avoid contact between healthcare workers and patients suffering from Covid-19.
Egypt hotels reopened with reduced capacity nearly full
Egyptian hotels operating with a new reduced occupancy rate of 25% have almost reached full capacity, a tourism ministry official told Reuters on Sunday.
Egypt suspended international flights in March and shut down restaurants, hotels and cafes in order to combat the pandemic.
Although airports remain closed to all but domestic and repatriation flights, hotels were recently allowed to reopen at a quarter of their usual capacity if they met strict health and safety protocols.
Around 78 hotels, mostly along the Red Sea coast, met these rules and are currently operating with an occupancy rate of 20%-22%, said the ministry official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
An additional 173 hotels across the country have applied for a licence to reopen and will be considered in the coming week, he added.
The government said it aimed to increase the permitted occupancy rate of hotels to 50% in June. Tourism is one of the country's main sources of foreign currency and accounts for 5% of GDP.
Egypt has so far registered 23,449 coronavirus cases, leading to 913 deaths. (Reuters)
Africa Covid-19 update: 09:00 WAT on Sunday 31 May (10:00 CEST)
According to the latest figures published by Johns Hopkins University, 6,064,778 cases have been detected worldwide, with 369,254 deaths and 2,566,084 people now recovered.
Nigeria: 9,302 cases / 261 deaths
South Africa: 30,967 cases / 643 deaths
Ghana: 7,768 cases / 35 deaths
Coronavirus live Africa updates: welcome
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