- A small clinical trial in South Africa found that AstraZeneca‘s Covid-19 vaccine doesn’t appear to protect recipients against mild and moderate illness from a fast-spreading new strain of the virus first detected in the country, reports The Wall Street Journal. The University of the Witwatersrand, which conducted the trial, said it couldn’t make an assessment whether the vaccine provided protection against more severe cases of Covid-19, as well as hospitalisation or death, because the relatively young trial participants were at low risk of developing serious Covid-19 symptoms. The variant first identified in South Africa is emerging as a key threat to the world’s prospects for ending the pandemic as countries roll out initial vaccine doses, reports Bloomberg. Although vaccine makers said their shots appear to maintain effectiveness against the UK variants, pharma companies are racing to develop booster shots against new strains as the virus evolves.
- African countries need access to favourable loan terms to rebuild their economies after the damage wrought by the coronavirus pandemic, according to South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. While many African nations have taken advantage of assistance from multilateral lenders, including the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, as well as a debt-relief program by the Group of 20 leading economies, “access to concessional finance will remain crucial as countries rebuild their economies,” said Ramaphosa, who is outgoing chairman of the African Union. After 25 years of uninterrupted economic growth, gross domestic product in sub-Saharan Africa probably contracted 3.7% in 2020 as a result of the pandemic, according to the World Bank. The lack of fiscal buffers are likely to weigh on the region’s recovery, with the pandemic having pushed the ratio of interest-to-revenue among sovereigns close to levels last seen before debt relief was extended in the 2000s, according to Fitch Ratings.
- Former president Jacob Zuma and the leader of the Economic Freedom Fighters Julius Malema met as Zuma comes under growing pressure to answer charges of corruption. Zuma has refused to testify at the Zondo commission of inquiry in defiance of the law. Rumours have been swirling that he may have plans to leave the country. In a tea party designed to gain maximum coverage in the media and on social media channels, Zuma, Malema and senior ANC figures who are in the anti-Ramaphosa camp posed for photographers with their china tea cups. Malema, who rose to prominence in the ANC with the support of Zuma, founded the EFF in 2013. He has been accused of inciting anti-white sentiment, supports land expropriation without compensation and has also been charged in the past with fraud and other crimes.
- The South African rand strengthened at the end of the business week, on signs of a smaller fiscal deficit and faster procurement of Covid-19 vaccines ahead of the budget speech later in the month, reports Reuters. It has been trading for less than R15 to the US greenback.
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