ADDIS ABABA - The death toll from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic on the African continent reached 1,080 as the number of confirmed cases hit 21,317 as of Sunday, the Africa Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) said.

The Africa CDC, a specialized agency of the 55-member African Union (AU) Commission, in its latest situation update issued on Sunday also revealed that the number of confirmed positive cases across the continent rose from 20,270 on Saturday to 21,317 as of Sunday afternoon.

The virus has so far spread into 52 African countries, it was noted.

Figures from the Africa CDC also show that amid the rapid spread of the virus across the continent, the highly COVID-19 affected African countries include Egypt, South Africa, Algeria as well as Morocco.

The death toll due to the COVID-19 pandemic across the African continent also surged from 1,025 on Saturday to 1,080 on Sunday afternoon, according to the Africa CDC.

The continental disease control and prevention agency also said that some 5,203 people who had been infected with the COVID-19 have recovered.

The Africa CDC also disclosed that the Northern African region is the most affected area across the continent both in terms of positive COVID-19 cases, as well as the number of deaths.

John Nkengasong, Africa CDC Director, told a virtual press conference on Friday the crucial need to strengthen COVID-19 precautionary measures across the continent so as to halt the spread of the virus.

"Movement restrictions imposed by countries may be inconveniencing and may have socio-economic effects, but the long-term gains are incomparable. It will save lives and help bring this pandemic to an end quicker," the Africa CDC director stressed.