He doesn’t share details, but after Yohannes was shunned, he found refuge with other believers. Now under government-imposed coronavirus restrictions, life has changed once again for Yohannes. His struggle to live has become that much more difficult. Because his own family has turned their backs on him and the Christians he knows are now living hand-to-mouth due to not being able to work, Yohannes is struggling to find enough food to eat.
He is one of hundreds of thousands of believers throughout sub-Saharan Africa who are not only persecuted for their decision to follow Jesus but are now doubly vulnerable to the impact of a global pandemic.
Persecution in COVID-19
While the coronavirus pandemic has hit Asia, Europe and North America with full force, sub-Saharan Africa—home to 1.1 billion people—is only at the beginning of the crisis. By Tuesday, April 14, there were 9,100 reported cases, with a death toll of 195—a death rate of just over two percent of reported cases. There are likely many more cases, but reporting has lagged behind in many places that don’t have adequate healthcare networks or access to testing.
According to Open Doors World Watch Research, data indicates a direct correlation between the countries in sub-Saharan Africa that are most vulnerable to the virus and the countries where Christians face the most pressure for following Jesus. Specifically, four of the five most virus-vulnerable countries—the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria, Sudan and Cameroon—also count among the places in sub-Saharan Africa where life is hardest for Christians.

Countries most vulnerable to Christian persecution

Countries most vulnerable to coronavirus.
Though the 54 countries in sub-Saharan Africa are in their early days of the coronavirus pandemic, persecuted Christians like Yohannes are already feeling the effects. For Christians who are already persecuted, the pandemic gives way to even more ways believers can be discriminated against, exploited and attacked for their faith.
Recently, Open Doors met with Rev. John Joseph Hayab in northern Nigeria, who shared how the pandemic is doubling vulnerability for believers: “We are facing persecution because of our faith and we are also facing a global pandemic,” he says. “We run away from our persecution … or we run away from the global sickness that we are facing. We have a double problem.
“But in all this, we still come back to remember the Word of Jesus: ‘Be ye of good cheers, for I have overcome the world.’ But He didn’t start with that; He says: ‘In this world you will have many troubles.’ This is another additional trouble we are facing.”
Watch as Open Doors’ West Africa Services director shares about the impact of COVID-19 on persecuted believers.