The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Africa has surpassed the 992,000 mark as countries on the continent continue to report steady rises in infections.

The latest data from the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention shows that Africa had registered 992,710 infections by Thursday evening.

The agency also notes that the continent's COVID-19-related deaths currently stand at 21, 617.

South Africa remains the worst affected country by the pandemic, having recorded 529,877 confirmed cases and 9,298 deaths.

The figures represent 53.4 percent of Africa's infections and 43 percent of its fatalities.

The country's total number of infections is the fifth highest globally, only shadowed by the United States, Brazil, India and Russia.

The second most affected African country by the COVID-19 pandemic is Egypt, which has reported 94,875 infections and 4,930 deaths.

Other than the two, only six other African countries have reported more than 20,000 cases.

Also, besides the two, only Algeria (1,261) has registered more than 1,000 COVID-19-related deaths on the continent.