The COVID-19 pandemic in Algeria was a part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The virus was confirmed to have spread to Algeria in February 2020.[3] In response, the Algerian government ordered curfews, restricted gatherings, canceled public events, and issued stay-at-home orders between February and June. Some measures were re-implemented in later months in response to new waves of infections. A mass vaccination campaign against COVID-19 began in January 2021.[4] The pandemic disrupted anti-government protests, which largely halted in 2020 and resumed in 2021.[5][6] 6,881 deaths were officially recorded by the Algerian government through 2022,[7] although the World Health Organization estimated over 21,000 deaths had occurred through 2021.[8]
COVID-19 pandemic in Algeria | |
---|---|
Disease | COVID-19 |
Virus strain | SARS-CoV-2 |
Location | Algeria |
First outbreak | Wuhan, Hubei, China |
Index case | Blida, Algeria |
Arrival date | 17 February 2020 (4 years, 2 months and 1 week) |
Confirmed cases | 272,017[1] |
Recovered | 264,971 (updated 23 July 2023) [2] |
Deaths | 6,881[1] |
Fatality rate | 2.53% |
Vaccinations | |
Government website | |
http://covid19.sante.gov.dz/carte/ https://dz-covid19.com/ http://covid19.cipalgerie.com/en/ https://corona-dz.live/ https://covid19.cdta.dz/ |
On 12 January, the World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed that a novel coronavirus was the cause of a respiratory illness in a cluster of people in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China, who had initially come to the attention of the WHO on 31 December 2019.[9][10] Unlike SARS of 2003, the case fatality ratio for COVID-19[11][12] was much lower, but the transmission was significantly greater, with a significant total death toll.[13][11] Algerians living in Wuhan were repatriated in early February.[14] On February 12, the Ministry of Health, Population and Hospital Reform announced it was preparing a new emergency plan for handling an outbreak of the virus.[15]