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A leading US Intelligence advisor has taken a firm stance on the origins of COVID-19, insisting that the virus came from a biological weapons lab in Wuhan.
A November 26 letter from the presidency asked the head of Uganda's national drug authority to 'work out a mechanism' to clear the importation of the vaccines.
China has about five COVID-19 vaccine candidates at different levels of trials. It was not clear what vaccine was being imported into Uganda.
One of the frontrunners is the Sinopharm vaccine developed by the Beijing Institute of Biological Product, a unit of Sinopharm’s China National Biotec Group (CNBG).
On Wednesday, the United Arab Emirates said the vaccine has 86% efficacy, citing an interim analysis of late-stage clinical trials.
China has used the drug to vaccinate up to a million people under its emergency use program.
On Tuesday, Morocco said it was ordering up to 10 million doses of the vaccine.
Record cases
Uganda on Monday registered 701 new COVID-19 cases, the highest-ever daily increase, bringing its national count to 23,200.
The new cases were out of the 5,578 samples tested for the novel coronavirus over the past 24 hours, the country's health ministry said in a statement.
Tuesday's tally was 606, the second-highest ever number of new infections, bringing the cumulative number of confirmed cases in the east African country to 23,860.
Health authorities have blamed ongoing election campaigns which have drawn huge crowds for the rise in infections.
Starting June 1, hotels and other accommodations will be open for tourists in Monroe County, Florida, which encompasses the collection of islands, U.S. News reported.
In order to continue to combat the spread of coronavirus in the state, Monroe County stated that this new order is “subject to revision based on data regarding the prevalence of the virus within Monroe County, increased testing and contact tracing protocols, and the efforts in the adjacent counties to continue to control transmission of the virus.”
According to U.S. News, the new order also includes the opening of beaches in the Florida Keys, so taking a trip to enjoy the sun and surf will be possible for tourists out there.
This was highlighted by Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Gender and Family Promotion, Assumpta Ingabire ahead of the International Day of Families.
This year, the day is celebrated globally under the theme- 'Families in Development: Copenhagen & Beijing + 25' while in Rwanda, celebrations are to be held under the theme of 'Let's build a resilient and safe family.'
In Rwanda, there will be no national celebrations by officials from the ministry and other stakeholders will use the media to discuss issues affecting families in the country.
Ingabire stressed that the family is the foundation for a country's development and hence should possess the foothold in the fight against the current pandemic.
To ensure resilience and safety of families, the ministry has carried out continued awareness through the media mobilising communities on the need to stay safe as well as maintaining peace and harmony in families.
Trump's opponent -- Joe Biden -- has vowed to halt the withdrawal should he win the upcoming elections.
Programs in training and skills development were availed to refugees without a clear integration into the local labour market realities or the same opportunity availed to host communities.
This was followed by the adoption of the Global compact on refugees (GCR) implemented through the Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework (CRRF) that recognizes the need for increased international responsibility sharing, easing pressure on host countries and communities while working towards self-reliance of refugees while perusing peace in countries of origin that would enable a return of those displaced.
The International Labour Organisation, ILO together with its partners (namely UNHCR, UNICEF, IFC and the World Bank), financially supported by the Kingdom of the Netherlands, have joined forces to support the government of Kenya's efforts towards the realization of the Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework, with the spirit and letter of the Global Compact on Refugees.
That is the reason for being of ILO Recommendation 205 on Employment and Decent Work for Peace and Resilience Recommendation (2017) and of the Guiding principles on the access of refugees and other forcibly displaced persons to the labour market (2016) that outline key considerations fostering social cohesion while engaging both communities in the labour market.
Caroline Njuki is the Chief Technical Advisor on Inclusive Jobs and education for host communities, refugees and other forcibly displaced persons at ILO Kenya
BY MOSES MATENGA THE ruling Zanu PF and opposition MDC Alliance yesterday said they were going ahead with preparations for by-elections despite the recent poll ban imposed by Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga. In announcing the ban, Chiwenga, who doubles as Health minister, cited COVID-19 fears, but his decision has been widely dismissed with the World Health Organisation last week saying elections could still be safely held as long as authorities enforce certain safety measures. Some voters have challenged the ban in court, with constitutional law experts saying they stood a greater chance of winning the case. At the weekend, both parties were in the trenches holding primary elections in various parts of the country, saying they were confident the ban would be reversed soon. Several constituencies are without representation in Parliament after Thokozani Khupe recalled 32 MDC Alliance MPs accusing them of defecting from her MDC-T party. Zanu PF national commissar Victor Matemadanda said his party was on the ground for any eventuality, insisting that the people needed representation “at all times”. “The ban doesn’t have anything to do with the preparation because COVID-19 will come to an end and elections will be there, but meanwhile, people want service, so we can’t have a time we say politics is on leave in a constituency where there are people,” Matemadanda said. “Therefore, we are preparing until elections are called for so we remain prepared.” Zanu PF held primary elections in Epworth where Kudakwashe Damson emerged victorious. This was the second primary election after Chiwenga’s declaration, with the one held in Kwekwe Central to replace the late National Patriotic Front MP Masango Matambanadzo being aborted due to intra-party violence. The Epworth seat fell vacant following the recall of MDC Alliance MP Ethenrige Kureva by Khupe. The MDC Alliance also held primary elections in Kuwadzana to choose a candidate to replace Miriam Mushayi who passed on in September. Party secretary-general Chalton Hwende said the ban was unconstitutional and by-elections would be held anytime. “We held a primary election for Kuwadzana where we lost Honourable Mushayi. We are not doing primary elections for the recalled MPs because we have maintained that the move was unconstitutional,” Hwende said. Hwende is one of the 32 MPs recalled by the MDC-T. “We have maintained that the ban on by-elections is unconstitutional and Parliament has weighed in and also stated that it is unconstitutional. “We insist the law must be upheld and that is why we are busy preparing and also Zanu PF is preparing because they know that they cannot violate the Constitution. Zanu PF is also holding primary elections and it means they are preparing for elections anytime.” Last month, Chiwenga announced postponement of the by-elections indefinitely before Speaker of Parliament Jacob Mudenda told Parliament on Thursday that Statutory Instrument 225A of 2020 had been deemed unconstitutional by the Parliamentary Legal Committee. He, however, appeared to make a
In some of these countries we're seeing an increase in cases and in others, new cases remain stable from week to week, indicating we need to remain vigilant to stop the spread of COVID-19,\" Moeti said.
So with COVID-19 threatening to overwhelm health systems, the extensive polio response network is once again lending crucial support as countries build up systems to contain COVID-19,\" said Moeti.
Mali's response to COVID-19
Safia Boly, Minister of Investment Promotion, Small and Medium Enterprises and National Entrepreneurship in Mali, shared how COVID-19 has impacted the economic prospects of the informal sector in her country.
The slowing rate of cases in many countries, which we have seen, has given the opportunity to scale up public health capacities so that even as lockdowns are being eased, which is what is happening in countries now, the capacity is there and even if there is an initial uptick of cases, as we are seeing in countries like South Africa, be more capable of stopping a very out of control spread of the virus.
The impact on economies, as Minister Boly explained, will be severe but we know an out of control spread of the pandemic could also overwhelm countries in other ways.\"
The World Health Organisation has commended South Africa for its declining confirmed Covid-19 cases.
[Nation] Amid the surge in Covid-19 infections and deaths in the country, health workers have been at risk of burnout as they are in the frontlines.
THE MTV Staying Alive Foundation (SAF) in partnership with the World Health Organisation, United Nations...
The post Metfilm School graduate writes ground-breaking TV show appeared first on Voice Online.
NPR's Rachel Martin talks to Minneapolis City Council President Lisa Bender about plans to defund and dismantle the city's police department following George Floyd's death and nationwide protests.
I mean, I think it's important to step back and realize that Minneapolis is a relatively small city - 430,000 people - and this is not the first time that police have killed a community member in recent years.
But, you know, to see George Floyd killed in the way he was, I think, just shows to our community that these incremental steps we've been taking are not working to solve this toxic culture and our police department, to break through the lack of accountability.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED NPR BROADCAST)
LORI LIGHTFOOT: You can have all the policies that you want, and I think the Chicago Police Department has policies that would be the equivalent of two New York City police departments.
So I think we've seen that even if we have inspiring and inspired leadership in our chief, even if - you know, for the last five years or so, our two police chiefs of color have interviewed every single recruit coming into the department themselves in order to help efforts to diversify the force, both racially through many practices but also to look for those qualities that we want in police officers.
[Cameroon Tribune] The population has been called to be vigilant as daily social interaction increases amidst new cases of the Covid-19 pandemic.
THE World Health Organisation (WHO) has recommended that mothers with confirmed COVID-19 infection can still breastfeed saying the benefits of doing so substantially outweighed the potential risks of transmitting the virus to their children. BY PHYLLIS MBANJE In a joint statement with the United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) to mark breastfeeding week, WHO said as long as the mothers practised regular hygiene and prevention practices, breastfeeding was the best option in the face of increased child malnutrition. World Breastfeeding Week is held every year from August 1 to 7 in more than 120 countries. The Health ministry also advised breastfeeding mothers against weaning their babies after testing positive to COVID-19. “Even if you are unwell, suspect or have confirmed COVID-19 continue breastfeeding,” the ministry said in a statement. The unprecedented global social and economic crises triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic have posed grave risks to the nutritional status and survival of young children in low-income and middle-income countries. “Of particular concern is an unexpected increase in child malnutrition, including reduction in infant and young child feeding practices, due to steep declines in household incomes,” the Unicef and WHO statement read. This comes at a time Zimbabwe has witnessed a rise in bottle feeding which does not only increase the health risk to the infants, but also contributes more to pollution. “Particularly during events such as this global COVID-19 pandemic, communities must remain aware of the benefits of breastfeeding over breast milk substitutes.” Evidence has shown that globally scaling up breastfeeding could prevent 2 000 maternal deaths, 823 000 child deaths, and US$302 billion in economic losses every year.
JUSTICE minister Ziyambi Ziyambi yesterday said government would not be swayed by recommendations from World Health Organisation (WHO) to lift a ban on by-elections, insisting the environment was not yet safe to hold polls. BY VENERANDA LANGA Quizzed by opposition legislators over the legality of a statutory instrument (SI) used by Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga, who is Health minister, to suspend the by-elections, Ziyambi said government would not be forced to adopt WHO recommendations hook, line and sinker. This came after WHO executive director for health emergencies programme Michael Ryan last week said it was possible to hold safe elections during COVID-19 if proper measures were put in place. The WHO boss said elections were a key human right which governments should not block under the guise of enforcing COVID-19 safety measures. But Ziyambi insisted that local conditions were not ripe for electoral activities. “When we make regulations, we make them according to our enabling legislation and we take advice as and when we see it fit according to our local conditions,” he said. “We do not just take advice for the sake of advice, otherwise it won’t be advice, but a directive. In our case, we analyse other issues by international organisations and we apply them to our conditions. Let us not worry about what WHO said, we do what is applicable to our conditions.” He added: “Coming to by-elections, we have a COVID-19 declaration which is ending in January pursuant to the SIs we enacted to give effect to that declaration in order for us to control the pandemic. “One of the SIs was to do with holding of by-elections. In other words, they were suspended for some time, but when the conditions are now right, we can go for elections. You must also consider that there is a curfew in place and when people are campaigning and there is a curfew, we are bound to criminalise several of our people. “We do not take everything that they say. We cannot endanger our people. At such a time when the pandemic improves, then we are going to talk about exercising the right to vote.”
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has questioned the modality Uganda is using to deduct numbers of Covid-19 positive foreign cases, especially of trans-border cargo truck drivers.
On May 20, President Museveni directed the Ministry of Health to deduct numbers of foreign truck drivers from the total sum of Ugandan coronavirus cases.
\"The President directed that in addition to testing all long-distance truck drivers before entry into the country, and only allowing in the negative ones, all the foreign drivers who had tested positive and had been added to the confirmed cases of Uganda should be deducted from Uganda's total confirmed Covid-19 cases.
WHO Uganda representative, Dr Yonas Tegegn Woldemariam, worries that the numbers could be lost in the counting if the country where the Covid-19 positive truck driver comes from does not include the cases in their total counts.
But there was no mention or discussion on whether or not each country should deduct numbers of foreign positive coronavirus cases from their total cases.
(@BISouthAfrica) April 22, 2020 QUESTION: Will cloth masks become compulsory in South Africa post-lockdown?
South Africans may be compelled to use cloth masks when using any form of transport when the national lockdown is set to lift at the end of April, according to a draft document by the Presidency.
READ MORE HERE
QUESTION: What are the 7 biggest interventions in President Cyril Ramaphosa's R500bn coronavirus support package?
The law on domestic worker payments during lockdown | @Parent24 https://t.co/Onzb6ljgwY pic.twitter.com/67lCzdCMCF — News24 (@News24) April 18, 2020 QUESTION: What are my options when it comes to paying my domestic worker or gardener during the lockdown?
LIST | The dos and don'ts during the national lockdown
Police Minister Bheki Cele has warned any person who contravenes the regulations of the nationwide lockdown from midnight on Thursday will be guilty of a criminal offence and will be liable to a fine or imprisonment for a period not exceeding six months, or both.
South Africa, along with all southern hemisphere nations, is reporting almost no influenza cases so far this winter.
Programmes in training and skills development were availed to refugees without a clear integration into the local labour market realities or the same opportunity availed to host communities.
This was followed by the Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework that recognises the need for increased international responsibility sharing, easing pressure on host countries and communities while working towards self-reliance of refugees while perusing peace in countries of origin that would enable a return of those displaced.
The new approach to displacement calls for increased, long-term funding to address long-standing development challenges, including the integration of labour for refugees and their hosts into the local economies.
Recognition of prior learning, such as informal skills acquired before and even during exile, remains low — thus hindering refugees’ meaningful engagement in the local labour market.
Ensuring that mechanisms for skills recognition and upskilling where need be are available for refugees, accompanied by access to employment services, both public and private that link them to existing opportunities in the labour market, would greatly enhance their participation and contribution to the local labour market.
Kenya’s leading research institute has begun exploring efficacy of one of its herbal and traditional medicines likely to treat Covid-19.
Kenya Medical Research Institute (Kemri) has identified Zedupex, an in-house herbal medicine used in the treatment of genital herpes -- a common viral disease that causes sores on the mouth and genitals.
“Kemri has commenced exploring efficacy of its in-house product (Zedupex) and other natural products against Covid-19,” Prof Kombe said.
But as Kenya tries to explore the treatment of the virus with traditional medicines, the African Union said it will now start testing the controversial herbal remedy for Covid-19 from Madagascar.
The WHO announced on Tuesday evening that it held a virtual meeting with 70 traditional medicine experts from African countries on the role of traditional medicine in Covid-19 response.
Of these, Zimbabwe had 314 confirmed cases and four deaths
In the backdrop of the extensive physical health coverage about the pandemic, we need to be reminded that the world was already seized with a major mental health crisis before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Evidence on the actual mental health impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in Zimbabwe is still emerging, and we need to be proactive about seeking and applying it.
This is largely because the COVID-19 pandemic is coming with exposure to some known risk factors for stress, depression and anxiety including high mortality rate, resource and food insecurity, discrimination, and experience with infected and sick individuals, which can lead to more adverse mental health outcomes.
These mental health challenges have been reported among healthcare workers, persons with COVID-19, their caregivers, and the generality of those exposed or at increased risk.
While we understand that COVID-19 does not discriminate, so is the mental health impact, inequalities are quite evident in the way we are affected.
Described as an onset of high blood pressure during pregnancy, the exact reason for the prevalence of preeclampsia in Uganda is unknown due to the fact that detailed clinical records of all births are lacking.
Also responsible for cases of miscarriage and low birth weight, the condition usually begins after the fifth month of pregnancy in women whose blood pressure had been normal, according to experts.
Dr Ononge said preeclampsia is basically managed in hospital where the blood pressure is controlled.
According to Dr Richard Idro, preeclampsia raises the blood pressure and it starts damaging the kidney and so protein starts leaking into the urine.
\"If the blood pressure rises too high it starts affecting the blood vessels in the brain and the mother can die,\" Dr Idro said.
Major African stats: June 11 at 7:00 GMT:
\t
\t\tConfirmed cases = 209,380
\t\tNumber of deaths = 5,689
\t\tRecoveries = 95,084
\t\tActive cases = 108,5607
SUGGESTED READING: rolling coverage of the coronavirus outbreak in Africa I
June 11: WHO warns of virus acceleration in Africa
\tThe World Health Organization says the pandemic in Africa is “accelerating” and that while it took 98 days for the continent to reach 100,000 coronavirus cases it took just 18 days to get to 200,000.
May 31: China to support Africa with virus logistics
\tChina will give Africa 30 million test kits per month, as well as 10 000 ventilators and 80 million masks, South African president Cyril Ramaphosa disclosed on Sunday during a virtual meeting with top editors in the country.
The South African president is also current chairperson of the African Union, AU; he is leading Africa’s most impacted country and the continent’s effort to get international support to fight the pandemic.
Africa dangerously behind in global race for virus gear
\tAs Africa braces for a surge in coronavirus cases, its countries are dangerously behind in the global race for scarce medical equipment.
AP
April 23: Africa’s 43% jump in virus cases in 1 week worries experts
\tAfrica registered a 43% jump in reported COVID-19 cases in the last week, highlighting a warning from the World Health Organization that the continent of 1.3 billion could become the next epicenter of the global outbreak.
CULTURAL PRACTICES
Speaking in Nyeri during the daily briefings on the pandemic on Sunday, Health Director General Patrick Amoth said he would send a circular to counties to remind them of the protocols on burial of Covid-19 victims.
In April after the first Covid-19 death was reported in Kenya, the Ministry of Health released protocols dictating that a body of a person who succumbs to Covid-19 should be buried within 48 hours.
The government has been condemned by Kenyans for violating the dignity of the dead despite the World Health Organisation (WHO) in its March 24 guidance on burials of Covid-19 victims saying that dead bodies are generally not infectious.
UNDIGNIFIED BURIALS
Families of Covid-19 patients who have been buried by health officials donned in personal protective gear have decried the manner in which their kin have been buried, alleging that the government did not let them have a say in the burials.
In April, a spine-chilling viral video of the burial of another Covid-19 victim in Siaya County surfaced showing a victim's body being buried while covered in a white body bag without a coffin.
PRIVATE commuter omnibus operators and small cars, popularly known as mushikashika, are back on the road in most cities and towns defying President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s ban on their operations during national lockdown.
Mnangagwa (pictured) declared Zupco the sole public transport operator during the indefinite lockdown.
I have received several reports that there was activity at various night spots including the popular Showground over the weekend and that private transport operators, especially those plying Chiredzi-Save or Chiredzi-Checheche routes, are back on the road,” he said.
The Zimbabwe Passengers Association (ZPA) called on government to lift the ban on private commuter omnibus due to escalating public transport shortages following the eased lockdown regulations.
The President maintained the ban on commuter omnibuses, but called on private operators to join the Zupco franchise.
South Africa will ease the Covid-19 lockdown from level four to level three beginning from June 1, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced Sunday amid a surge in confirmed cases.
Level three will allow the opening of the economy and the removal of a number of restrictions on the movement of people, while significantly expanding and intensifying the public health interventions, said Ramaphosa.
President Ramaphosa said the decision was based on wide consultations with various stakeholders across the country and guided by advice from the World Health Organisation and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.
Even as the country moves to alert level three, it is important that South Africans should be aware that there are a few parts of the country where the disease is concentrated and infections continue to rise, the president said.
By Sunday, South Africa has recorded 22,583 confirmed Covid-19 cases, up by 1,240 from Saturday, the highest daily surge since March 5 when the country reported its first case.
