The Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation, Dr Blade Nzimande, assured Africa's scientific community that just as the continent had defeated colonial and racial oppression, so too would it overcome the novel coronavirus.

Dr Nzimande was speaking at this year's virtual Africa Day event, which took place on Monday, 25 May under the theme, "COVID-19 and Africa's future development: Opportunities and challenges."

According to Dr Nzimande, South Africa is also significantly ramping up its multidisciplinary scientific capacity to deal with pandemics.

The fund will support COVID-19 research cooperation in Africa, capacity-building for science engagement and communication, as well as scientific advice for governments.

The African Union's Prof. Sarah Anyang Agbor welcomed South Africa's efforts to look locally to research and develop vaccines to combat the coronavirus.