Abstract

This study aimed to analyze the relationship between gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, the number of tests, and confirmed cases of COVID-19 in South Africa, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Kenya, Ethiopia, Morocco, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Togo, Tunisia, and Zimbabwe. The database data on COVID-19 (coronavirus) (GitHub platform) was the source of information on GDP per capita, the number of tests, and confirmed cases of COVID-19 on 19 July 2020. Data were subjected to the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test (= 0.05), comparisons of their values considering the countries, and a Pearson's correlation matrix. GDP per capita, the number of tests and confirmed cases of COVID-19 presented positive Pearson's correlations (p < 0.05 and r > 0.5). There is positive feedback between the number of tests and the number of cases. Also, the GDP per capita reveals that purchasing power is a catalyst for such a phenomenon. Consequently, countries with the highest number of tests also present the highest numbers of confirmed cases. The evidence suggests that economic power determines the volume of testing, which might affect the differences between the numbers of confirmed cases in these nations.

Key words: Gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, testing, confirmed cases, COVID-19, Africa.