The number of COVID-19 infections in Africa is closing in on the four million mark as countries tighten efforts to tackle new waves of the virus.

According to the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) the continent had reported 3,994,030 case with 106,712 deaths.

Many countries on the continent have already rolled out their COVID-19 vaccination campaigns focusing on frontline healthcare workers, essential workers and the elderly.

South Africa is the hardest-hit country in Africa, having announced 1,524,174 infections and 51,015 fatalities.

Its caseload is more than three times higher than the tally reported by Morocco, whose 487,286 is the second-highest national virus load in Africa.

Apart from the two, seven other African countries have recorded more than 100,000 COVID-19 cases, while a total of 13 countries have reported more than 1,000 virus-related fatalities.

With the introduction of vaccines, Africa hopes to slow down further spread of the virus and deaths.