The Covid-19 pandemic has affected global economies and business relations, yet the long-term implications on trade and investment flows as well as the consequences for global supply chains are not foreseeable. This uncertain outlook occurs in a moment of time where German policy makers and business associations have been fostering German companies to invest intensively in sub-Saharan Africa and cautious optimism started vis-à-vis the German activities on the continent. The volume of investment and trade between Germany and sub-Saharan Africa has increased over the past years and the question appears how these rather young business contacts – which are traditionally more fragile than long-established relations – are affected by the pandemic.

At the end of April, Federal Minister Dr. Müller presented the new Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development's (BMZ in German) 2030 concept, which aims, among other things, to use "measures and funds even more effectively and efficiently".Approximately at the same time as the new strategy was presented, a broad discussion began on "what consequences the Corona pandemic should have for the future direction of development cooperation, especially with African states".We are honoured to present the ten theses by political scientist and Africa studies expert Rainer Tetzlaff in this issue of the  Afrikapost aktuell, which reflect both the new concept of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development and the consequences of Covid-19 for development cooperation.

For a period of several months Covid-19 has been keeping much of the world on the edge. Throughout the African continent, the number of infections is still relatively low. While the opinions of experts differ as to how the pandemic will develop in Africa, a number of political and economic effects of the crisis are already being felt. The measures taken by African governments to contain the pandemic have far-reaching consequences for economic productivity and the daily lives of many people. The African Union, the World Bank and others have developed scenarios that not only attempt to quantify the consequences for the economy, but also identify the specific African challenges in dealing with the pandemic and make recommendations for action.This issue of Afrikapost Aktuell intends to provide an insight on this chosen topic and not a comprehensive assessment of Covid-19’s impact on the continent. It presents data, facts and scenarios on the significance of the corona pandemic for the African continent and provides an overview of the support measures already initiated. Finally, the interview with Nicholas Opiyo, the German Africa Award winner 2017, focuses on the consequences of the pandemic from the very personal perspective of a Ugandan intellectual.