Could covid-19’s late arrival in sub-Saharan Africa leave it better-positioned to cope than the rest of the world? While the virus has continued to spread around the world at breakneck speed, Africa has until now escaped relatively unscatched — a blessing considering the fragility of many of the continent’s healthcare systems. While watching from a safe distance, African countries have been preparing for the virus’ inevitable arrival: 40 countries are now equipped to test for covid-19 (from only two in January), while the continent has also been able to learn from the successes and failures of its peers. That’s all without taking into account Africa’s experience in handling health epidemics, including the ebola outbreak (watch, runtime: 02:14).