African economy will lose $65 billion if there is a full lockdown of the continent due to COVID-19, Stephen Karingi, Director, Regional Trade and Integration, United Nations Economic Commission for Africa has disclosed.
Karingi said this during the World Health Organisation and World Economic Forum virtual joint press briefing on Thursday.
The director said the African economy would contrast as much as three per cent in 2020.
According to him, an analysis done by UNECA showed that every month the African economy would lose 2.5 per cent of its GDP if a total lockdown was declared.
“This is about 6.5 billion dollars every month based on the intensity and strictness of the lockdown. If we have a full lockdown of the whole continent, we would lose $65 billion,” Karingi said.
According to him, reports of the first quarter released by African governments revealed a reduction in exports and lower revenue generation by governments because of the lower activities of businesses and the economy.
He added that the speed of Africa’s recovery from the pandemic would depend on its actions to save lives and businesses, adding that without lives, there would be no businesses and income.
