Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Acholi regional coronavirus task force is bothered by the uncontrolled disposal of waste by truck drivers along major highways saying it could spread the coronavirus disease to communities. The task force members say much as efforts are being made to restrict the movement …
Read More »African e-commerce firms get coronavirus boost
Dakar, Senegal | AFP | Seydou Sall sprays antiseptic on bags of food freshly deposited by an e-commerce firm at his home in an upmarket quarter of Senegal’s capital Dakar. In a pattern repeated across the continent, the researcher has turned to online deliveries to get basics such as sugar, milk …
Read More »Little hope ahead of polls as Burundi economy hit by virus
Bujumbura, Burundi | AFP | Five years of political crisis have battered Burundi’s economy, and there is little hope of a turnaround ahead of elections next week, as feeble signs of recovery have been dashed by the coronavirus crisis. The country’s last election in 2015, which saw President Pierre Nkurunziza seek …
Read More »Stampede as positive truck driver is rounded up in Gulu
Gulu, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | There was a stampede in Gulu Town on Thursday evening after security personnel rounded up a truck driver who tested positive for Coronavirus Disease. The patient is an Eritrean national who had already spent two days in the community after he arrived in Gulu on …
Read More »COVID-19: Truck drivers hit highest figure of 21
UPDATE UGANDA 🔸 21 new cases (truck drivers) ✳ 67,171 UG Tests done ✳ 160 Confirmed cases ✳ 63 Recoveries ✳ 0 deaths Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Ministry of Health has just confirmed the country’s highest number of COVID-19 positive tests in a day – 21 of …
Read More »Q&A: Africa’s coronavirus enigma
Abidjan, Ivory Coast | AFP | Three months ago, Africa recorded its first case of coronavirus, sparking fears that the world’s poorest and least-equipped continent faced a catastrophe. But so far, the virus has not come anywhere close to wreaking the same damage in Africa as in Europe and the US …
Read More »Trump says does not wish to talk to Xi ‘right now’
Washington, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump said Thursday he is no mood to speak with China’s Xi Jinping, warning darkly he might cut off ties with the rival superpower over its handling of the coronavirus pandemic. “I have a very good relationship, but I just — right now I don’t want …
Read More »UN ‘deeply’ regrets Burundi expulsion of WHO team
Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | UN investigators said Thursday they deeply regretted Burundi’s expulsion of World Health Organization experts who were supporting the country’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. Burundi booted out the experts as the country prepares to go to the polls on Wednesday to choose a new president, parliamentarians …
Read More »Why is Russia’s coronavirus death rate so low?
Moscow, Russia | AFP | Russia has the world’s second-highest number of coronavirus cases but has registered 10 times fewer deaths than Britain, France, Italy and Spain. So many are wondering: why is the country’s mortality rate so low? Critics have accused Russian authorities of under-counting the number of deaths to …
Read More »Coronavirus vaccine may be ready in a year: EU agency
The Hague, Netherlands | AFP | A vaccine for the novel coronavirus could be ready in a year’s time under an “optimistic” scenario, based on trials that are underway, the European Medicines Agency said Thursday. The Amsterdam-based EU agency also played down fears expressed by the WHO that the virus might …
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