Corona Watch

MalawiMalawi joined other southern African nations in announcing a three-week lockdown on Tuesday to curb the spread of coronavirus."If [we are] not careful, Malawi could lose up to 50 000 lives from Covid," president Peter Mutharika said at a news conference with health minister Jappie Mhango announcing the lockdown lasting from April 18 until May 9.Mhango said all non-essential businesses and services would cease. – Nampa/ReutersBurkina Faso, NigerThe International Monetary Fund's (IMF) executive board has approved support for Burkina Faso and Niger under its Rapid Credit Facility to help the West African nations confront the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, the fund said.In statements released late on Tuesday, the IMF said the board had approved a US$115 million disbursement for Burkina Faso and another US$114 million for Niger. – Nampa/ReutersSouth AfricaSouth African finance minister Tito Mboweni ruled out an IMF adjustment programme on Tuesday and said the country didn't need budget support, despite acknowledging that there would be a deep recession this year because of the global Covid-19 pandemic.Addressing reporters on a conference call, Mboweni gave few clues as to how the government would raise additional funding, saying only that it was "open-minded" about approaching all international financial institutions.“We would be looking for the Covid-19-specific packages that we can access."We are looking at programmes which would not be accompanied by any structural adjustment programme," he said. "We know what to do, we know what our structural reform programme is." – Nampa/ReutersKenyaThe Kenyan parliament on Tuesday voted to lower the value-added tax rate to 14% from 16%, part of president Uhuru Kenyatta's attempts to cushion citizens from the impact of the coronavirus crisis.Last month, Kenyatta cut the VAT rate and proposed the removal of income tax on workers who earn a maximum of 24 000 shillings (US$227) a month. He also proposed a five percentage points reduction of income tax for top earners and corporations.The National Assembly is considering the income tax cuts in a separate amendment to the tax law. – Nampa/ReutersTunisia Tunisia's vital tourism sector could lose US$1.4 billion and 400 000 jobs this year due to the coronavirus, an official document showed, as the country sought a loan guarantee from the International Monetary Fund to issue sovereign bonds this year.In a letter sent to the IMF, Tunisia's central bank governor and finance minister said that the country's economy will shrink by up to 4.3%, the deepest recession since independence in 1956. – Nampa/Reuters

Corona Watch

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