COVID-19 vaccine scheme for poorest has $US2.6 billion left to spend as pandemic recedes
London, UKReuters Several billions of dollars left in a scheme to deliver COVID-19 vaccines to the world’s poorest could be diverted to prepare for other pandemics or to support vaccine manufacturing in Africa, the scheme’s partners said. The COVAX initiative, run by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, the World Health Organization, and the Coalition for Epidemic […]
After two months, a scarred Shanghai’s COVID-19 lockdown ends
Shanghai, ChinaReuters Following two months of frustration, despair and economic loss, Shanghai’s draconian COVID-19 lockdown ended at midnight on Wednesday morning, prompting celebrations tempered with fear that an outbreak could return. Most of Shanghai’s 25 million residents can now freely leave home, return to work, use public transport and drive their cars – a moment […]
India’s COVID deaths cross 500,000 but some analysts count millions more
New Delhi, IndiaReuters India’s official COVID-19 death toll crossed 500,000 on Friday, a level some data analysts said was breached last year but was obscured by inaccurate surveys and unaccounted dead in the hinterlands, where millions remain vulnerable to the disease. The country, which has the fourth-highest tally of deaths globally, recorded 400,000 deaths by […]
“Unprecedented need”: As COVID continues, US church-run food pantries, ministries adapt and expand
BOB SMIETANA, of Religion News Service, reports on how US churches adapted food assistance programs during the COVID-19 pandemic…
Essay: Six important truths about COVID-19 vaccines
In an article first published on The Conversation, US-based pharmacist SARAH LYNCH and immunologist KANNEBOYINA NAGARAJU dispel some common myths about the COVID-19 vaccines…
Twin ‘crises’ of climate and COVID hammering millions, Red Cross says
Barcelona, SpainThomson Reuters Foundation Weather disasters and the COVID-19 pandemic have simultaneously hit tens of millions of people worldwide this year, making them more vulnerable to both threats and hampering emergency response, the Red Cross said on Wednesday. In a new analysis, the international humanitarian agency said about 70 per cent of the 132 disasters linked […]
At least 300,000 Africans expected to die in pandemic: UN agency
Johannesburg, South AfricaReuters The COVID-19 pandemic will likely kill at least 300,000 Africans and risks pushing 29 million into extreme poverty, the UN Economic Commission for Africa said on Friday, calling for a $US100 billion safety net for the continent. Africa’s 54 countries have so far reported fewer than 20,000 confirmed cases of the disease, […]