The spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) to sub-Saharan Africa in February 2020 spurred concern that the pandemic would have catastrophic consequences for many African countries and international interests on the continent. In March 2020, the Financial Times ran a headline that warned, “Africa Faces a Catastrophe to Dwarf All Others.”1 In early April, Le Monde reported that a study by France’s foreign ministry warned that the pandemic would be “one crisis too many” and could pitch several African countries over the edge.2 Given the recent U.S. prioritization of major-power rivalry, or strategic competition, many in U.S. policy circles likewise worried that a looming crisis in sub-Saharan Africa would be a boon to U.S. competitors, specifically China and Russia. Have such dire predictions come to pass? Has COVID-19 created opportunities for China and Russia to enhance their influence, or have the contours of strategic competition on the continent remained largely the same? Has the pandemic affected the demand