South Africa burdened by about 100,000 virus testing backlog

Authorities in South Africa have expressed worry over shortages of COVID-19 testing kits and reagents as cases consistently rise in the country and across the continent.

Nearly 100,000 people have not taken the coronavirus tests in South Africa reports say. According to the Health Ministry, priority is now given to patients admitted to hospitals and health workers.

Other African countries have also been hit by the widespread shortages of testing kits. However some analyst believe the wealthier countries are knocking poorer counties out in the race to obtain crucial supplies.

South Africa has – as of May 29 – conducted more tests for the virus than any other country in Africa — more than 655,000 — and has the most confirmed cases with nearly 28,000

“This challenge is caused by the limited availability of test kits globally,” the health ministry said in a statement overnight, putting the backlog at 96,480 as of Monday. Priority is given to processing tests from patients admitted to hospitals and health workers, it said.

Major African stats: May 30 at 7:00 GMT:

• Confirmed cases = 135,375
• Number of deaths = 3,923
• Recoveries = 56,401
• Active cases = 75,051