The global community is racing to slow down and halt the spread of SARS-CoV-2. The COVID-19 pandemic has claimed tens of thousands of lives in a very short period of time, since it was first announced on December 31, 2019. In Africa, the virus has spread to dozens of countries within weeks. Several African governments have put in place measures for early detection, contact tracing, and quarantining of potential contacts. Currently, forty-seven countries in the WHO African region can now test for COVID-19.