COVID-19 during malaria transmission season in Africa and why we should be prepared: An example from Senegal

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is not just a global health crisis; it is also a socio-economic crisis1 with a huge number of associated deaths.2 On 30 June 2020, the World Health Organization reported 10 185 374 cases and 503 862 deaths related to COVID-19 globally, of which 297 290 cases and 6010 deaths were recorded in Africa.1 In Senegal, malaria transmission is seasonal with high vector populations observed during the rainy season – from mid-June to October. The heaviest rainfalls are observed in the months of July, August and September. On 30 March 2020, as effort to combat the spread of COVID-19 in Senegal, a state of emergency was declared banning religious gatherings, closing schools and universities and imposing a curfew between 22:00 and 06:00. As of 30 June 2020, the day the state of emergency was lifted, the authorities had reported 6698 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 108 COVID-19 related deaths1,3,4 thus the country was confronted with managing the expected rainy-season malaria epidemic and the on-going COVID-19 pandemic. Hence, this article aims to draw the attention of authorities to this current situation....