Sub-Saharan Africa's gross domestic product is expected to contract 1.6% this year, compared 3.1% growth last year, as the coronavirus pandemic wrecks the region's economies, the International Monetary Fund said on Tuesday .
FILE PHOTO: A police officer is pictured at a road block while the spread of the coronavirus disease continues in Abuja, Nigeria April 9, 2020. REUTERS/Afolabi Sotunde
Various African governments have imposed lockdowns and curfews to curb the spread of the coronavirus, but the restrictions are putting pressure on most economies — some of which were already in recession. South Africa entered a recession in the final quarter of last year as power cuts by state utility Eskom took a toll on the economy, while public finances were strained by bailouts to struggling state firms.
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