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JOHANNESBURG, South Africa (AFP) — After much delay and on the cusp of a third wave, South Africa on Monday launched a large-scale Covid immunization campaign, targeting around five million people aged over 60 by the end of June. Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said late Sunday that the target would be achieved if the anticipated orders of vaccines were delivered on time. “We will begin to vaccinate citizens 60 years and older, who are the […]
by Christophe VOGT GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — Countries belonging to the G7 and the European Union can afford to donate more than 150 million vaccines to countries in need without compromising their own goals, UNICEF said Monday. The world’s seven richest states and the EU could help close the world’s vaccine gap by sharing just 20 percent of their June, July and August stocks with the Covax jab scheme for poorer nations, a study by […]
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Britain on Sunday passed the milestone of vaccinating 20 million adults with two doses of the coronavirus jab, just a day before a raft of restrictions are lifted across most of the country. According to government statistics, 20,103,658 million have now received their full two vaccine doses — 38.2 precent of the adult population. Still more have received a first dose — 36,573,354, or 69.4 percent of the adult population […]
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — A rise in cases of the Indian coronavirus variant could “pose serious disruption” to Britain’s reopening plans, Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned Friday. England will take the next step of reopening on Monday as planned, but the final stage, currently scheduled for June 21, could be in doubt. “I do not believe we need to delay our roadmap,” said Johnson. But, “this new variant could pose a serious disruption to […]
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AFP) — Taiwan ordered stricter social distancing measures for its capital and surrounding areas on Saturday after a sudden spike in coronavirus cases in a place that has so far weathered the pandemic comparatively unscathed. Authorities raised the alert level for Taipei and New Taipei City after 180 new domestic coronavirus infections were confirmed, up from 29 cases the previous day. The new restrictions mean no more than five people can gather indoors […]
PARIS, France (AFP) — France reached its target of injecting 20 million initial doses of coronavirus vaccines Saturday, days ahead of a hugely anticipated reopening of restaurant terraces, part of an easing of the nationwide lockdown. President Emmanuel Macron announced the milestone in a tweet that said “20 million” with a green checkmark, a number that represents around 30 percent of the population. Health officials said the exact figure was 20,086,792; with 8,805,345 people having […]
by Louis GENOT RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AFP) — Four months into a Covid-19 vaccination campaign marred by shortages and delays, hard-hit Brazil is still struggling to find enough doses, as political and diplomatic blunders prolong its pandemic nightmare. Around 33 million people — 15 percent of the population — have received at least one vaccine dose in Brazil, a proportion still too small to have a substantial impact on the virus’ spread. Targeted by […]
GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — The WHO urged wealthy countries Friday to stop vaccinating children against Covid-19 and instead donate doses to poorer nations, while warning that the pandemic’s second year looked set to be more deadly. World Health Organization director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus voiced outrage that a number of rich countries were now vaccinating children and teenagers, while poorer states had barely begun vaccinating health workers and the most vulnerable groups. Instead of offering […]
by Joe STENSON Agence France Presse DUBLIN, Ireland (AFP) — Ireland’s health authority said Friday it had shut down its computer systems after experiencing a “significant ransomware attack”, a week after the largest US fuel pipeline network was also targeted. The Irish attack was blamed on international criminals and was said to be targeting healthcare records, but officials said patient safety was not at risk. “We have taken the precaution of shutting down all […]
SINGAPORE, Singapore (AFP) — Singapore announced a ban on dine-ins and cut group sizes to two people on Friday as it further toughened virus curbs to stem a rise in local transmissions. After a partial lockdown and a rigorous regime of testing and contact tracing, Covid-19 had almost disappeared in the city-state, with authorities reporting hardly any local transmission in recent months. But over the last few weeks cases have risen, with officials announcing several […]
by Marion DOUET and Hillary ORINDE NAIROBI, Kenya (AFP) — At the peak of Kenya’s third wave of Covid-19 in March, hospitals — buckling under the strain of the virus — saw their oxygen reserves fizzle out. Since then, they have been scrambling to increase capacity of the lifesaving element, fearing the nightmare scenario currently unfolding in India due to oxygen shortages. On the roof of the Metropolitan Hospital, a 150-bed private institution that targets […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Building standards need to undergo a “paradigm shift” to better protect against airborne diseases, a group of experts said Thursday, drawing on hard-won lessons from the Covid pandemic. Future building designs must incorporate increased ventilation and air-cleaning measures, including filtration and disinfection using both filters and ultraviolet devices, they wrote in the journal Science. This comes as accumulating data suggest that tiny particles containing the coronavirus that are released by […]
