South Africa’s COVID-19 response is marred by corruption allegations around its historic 26 billion USD economic relief package, as the country with the world’s fifth highest number of COVID-19 cases braces for more.

South Africa, one of the world's most unequal countries with a large population vulnerable to the new coronavirus, may have an advantage in the outbreak, honed during years battling HIV and tuberculosis: the know-how and infrastructure to conduct mass testing.