Knowledge, attitude, and perceptions towards the 2019 Coronavirus Pandemic: A bi-national survey in Africa

The current Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has changed and impacted lives on a global scale since its emergence and spread from China in late 2019. It has caused millions of infections, and thousands of deaths worldwide. However, the control of this pandemic still remains unachievable in many African countries including Egypt and Nigeria, despite the application of some strict preventive and control measures. Therefore, this study assessed the knowledge, attitude and perceptions of Egyptians and Nigerians towards COVID-19 pandemic.

A total of 1437 respondents were included in this preliminary cross-sectional survey. The mean knowledge score was 14.7±2.3. The majority of the respondents (61.6%) had a satisfactory knowledge of the disease. Age (18-39 years), education (College/bachelors) and background of respondents were factors influencing knowledge levels. The attitude of most respondents (68.9%) towards the preventive measures was satisfactory with an average attitude score of 6.9 ± 1.2. The majority of the respondents (96%) practiced self-isolation and social-distancing but only 36% follow all health recommendations. The perception of most respondents (62.1%) on the global efforts at controlling the virus and preventing further spread was satisfactory with an average score of 10.9 ± 2.7. A satisfactory knowledge of COVID-19 was significantly associated with good attitude and perceptions (p < 0.001) of respondents. Only 22% of the respondents were satisfied with their country’s handling of the pandemic.

It is imperative that to avoid Africa being the next epicenter of the pandemic. Governments need to strengthen health systems, improve their surveillance activities in detecting cases, and effectively apply standard infection prevention and control measures.