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This article aims to analyze how Nigeria, the 86th ranked State according to the Global Health Security Index (GHS Index), fared through the Covid-19 pandemic by linking its Ebola experience to the pandemic response. The paper will tackle (one of) these questions: Does their response as a State truly reflect the ranking? Or were they, like the rest of the world, truly unprepared and powerless against the outbreak? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses multidisciplinary international research collaboration team formation during the COVID-19 pandemic, challenges faced, strategies adopted, achievements and dynamics in the implementation of research on Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19), by the African Translational Research Group (ATReG). The paper also discusses the lessons learnt and future opportunities for global collaborative research. In-depth virtual interviews were conducted with consenting members of ATReG. Questions were designed to provide rich, deep, and insightful opinions, lived experiences and perspectives of ATReG group members on group formation, challenges, strategies and achievements. Interview data was transcribed and analysed thematically, and the results were presented with important quotations presented. The ATReG consisted of English (n = 13) and French (n = 1) speaking sub-Saharan African (SSA) researchers who specialise in public health, epidemiology, optometry, information technology, supply chain management, psychiatry, community health, general medical practice, nutrition and biostatistics. Most members of the group reported an informal but well-coordinated structure of the group. Formed during the pandemic, all group meetings were held online, and many members are yet to meet each other in person. The group collected data from Africans and published 10 peer reviewed journal articles on COVID-19 within two years. It presented in international conferences, engaged with the media and the public and was awarded a national competitive funding in Nigeria all of which which contributed to career progression and academic promotion of some members. There have been challenges in sustaining the research collaboration and maintaining productivity. Challenges include difficulties meeting deadlines and obtaining funding for research activities. However, these challenges have been addressed through a collaborative problem-solving approach. The study found the need for operational and methodological flexibility, centralised coordination, and established funding sources as being essential for long term sustainability and performance of the group. The ATReG's objective of providing useful data on COVID-19 and generating useful knowledge about COVID-19 in SSA has been achieved. In such a multi-disciplinary international collaborative team relaiant on the online medium to operate, the experiences and challenges can be a model for learning for researchers intending to form international multidisciplinary collaborative groups. Nonetheless, there are still many important areas of research which ATReG will continue to pursue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The eruption of the novel virus brought to the global scene the prediction that Africa would be worse hit by the pandemic. This prediction was partly built on the widely recognized fact that Africa is the continent with the weakest public health care system and the lowest budgetary allocations to health. However, contrary to this prediction, the COVID-19 death rate in Africa has been low compared to in other continents. Debates on Africa's low COVID-19 death rate have generated mixed reactions, the majority of which have centred on beliefs and superstition about hot weather and Africa's youth-dominated society. Little or none of these reactions have attributed the low COVID-19 death rate to swift and prudent budgetary adjustment, which partly aided a swift response from some African governments. Indeed, not many studies have examined the swiftness in the response of some African governments and prudent budgetary adjustment in tackling the spread of COVID-19. This paper, through secondary data, advances knowledge on how budget revision aided government response to the COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa and Nigeria. It found that both countries adjusted their budgetary allocations in response to COVID-19. It further indicates that South Africa, through budgetary revision, allocated more funds to government agencies in charge of COVID-19 and various relief packages than Nigeria. Moreover, it indicates that the swift budgetary adjustment by both countries partly aided a quick government response that progressively flattened the curve and, in the long run, partly contributed to fiscal impulse and deferrals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since pandemic declaration, the vulnerability of countries with serious economic challenges and limited health resources became evident. This vulnerability has been put to the test once again with the appearance of Omicron as another variant of concern. Although great efforts have been made to develop effective and safe vaccines, they need to be made available globally at an affordable price to all governments and distributed equitably to maximize immediate and long-term efforts to contain the virus and advance global public health. Potential sources of unfair allocation of COVID-19 vaccines are not hard to find. The COVID-19 Vaccine Global Access Facility (COVAX) has so far shipped over 406 million COVID-19 vaccines to 144 eligible participants. From that batches, about 115 million doses (28%) were allocated to 49 African countries. If proactive measures are not undertaken, Nigeria, pointed here as a case study, and Sub-Saharan Africa countries may not be self-reliant for COVID-19 vaccines. This report raises a discussion on the difficulties in accessing vaccines and diagnostics in sub-Saharan Africa, compared to high- and middle-income countries. Now more than ever, it is crucial to note that there is no overcoming a pandemic without coordinated action for actions that go beyond borders. The coordinated effort to raise vaccination rates in the African continent is not a humanitarian action aimed exclusively at Africa, but more than that, it is an effort for the benefit of global public health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies acknowledge that COVID-19 is a game-changer resulting in an operational "new normal" across organizational endeavours including university governance. One effect of COVID-19 on social change organizations like universities in Africa is that it intensified operational disruptions. The study utilizes narrative analysis to evaluate the impact of COVID-19 on university governance using South Africa-Nigeria settings as a template to generalize for Africa. Its data stems from a methodological qualitative orientation, implying that the narrations derive from unstructured interviews with key players within the university system. It is anchored on a conceptual framework founded on the ontology of African administrative and organizational culture that dialectically prompts epistemological analysis. The ontology facet deals with the status quo of university governance before COVID-19, denoting universities as mini societies reflecting the continent's general operational culture. The epistemology aspect dealt with knowledge generation, indicating innovation African universities need to adopt to operate effectually during and aftermath of COVID-19. It finds that e-university governance application in Nigeria is underdeveloped compared to South Africa's model which is basic. However, it concludes that improved investment in digitalizing operations of universities is imperative for their successful governance in a post-COVID-19 pandemic epoch in Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study sought to establish how African libraries have been thriving during the COVID-19 pandemic through systematic review of literature from the Library Philosophy and Practice e-Journal (LPP). The PRISMA guidelines were followed to review and select the twelve (12) articles used for qualitative analysis. The study findings established that research productivity pertaining to libraries and Covid-19 is very low in Africa based on LPP e-journal. Nigeria was established to be the most active country in this research phenomenon. Majority, of the studies were conducted in academic libraries, thus creating a gap in research. To sail through the pandemic, libraries are using various social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, WhatsApp, Zoom, Microsoft teams and Skype to provide virtual reference services. Librarians also, went an extra mile to ensure dissemination of authentic COVID-19 information by collating and verifying information sources for their patrons. Services such as curb-side pick-up have also been introduced in Africa. However, it was not clear whether African libraries are conducting document delivery by scanning or through courier services. Challenges that are likely to fuel the pandemic and inhibit transition of libraries in to the 4IR era include lack of change management, lack of ICT literacy, inadequate ICT infrastructure, and lack of technological support, lack of clear policies, power cuts and financial issues. Research implications to policy makers, librarians and researchers have been established. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]