JOHANNESBURG, April 7 (Reuters) - More than two thirds of Africans have been infected by COVID-19 since the pandemic started, 97 times more than reported confirmed cases, according to a World Health Organization (WHO) study published on Thursday.

The study found that by September 2021, 800 million Africans had been exposed to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, compared with 8.2 million cases reported at that time.

The WHO said that under-counting was happening everywhere, but to a lesser degree than in Africa. It said that on average globally, true infections were 16 times higher than confirmed cases.

The agency's regional director for Africa, Dr Matshidiso Moeti, said that the continent's high exposure to the virus and currently declining infection rates did not mean that Africa could declare victory against COVID-19. ...