Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Ministry of Health is planning to turn Mandela National Stadium (Namboole) into a health facility if the number of COVID-19 cases increase. This was revealed on Wednesday by Diana Atwine, the Health Ministry Permanent Secretary while appearing before the parliamentary committee on …
Read More »Russian plane with supplies for virus fight lands in US
New York, United States | AFP | A Russian military plane carrying medical supplies arrived in the United States on Wednesday, the Russian mission to the UN said, as the Kremlin flexes its soft power during the coronavirus pandemic. The Antonov-124, landed at JFK Airport in New York — the epicenter …
Read More »World faces food crisis in wake of coronavirus: UN, WTO
Paris, France | AFP | The heads of three global agencies warned Wednesday of the risk of a worldwide “food shortage” if authorities fail to manage the ongoing coronavirus crisis properly. Many governments around the world have put their populations on lockdown causing severe slow-downs in international trade and food supply chains. Panic buying by …
Read More »Auto industry races to make ventilators during virus crisis
Paris, France | AFP | The automotive industry is offering its expertise and manpower to the hospital sector as it gears up to build mechanical ventilators during the coronavirus pandemic, an initiative that is being met with some scepticism. American auto manufacturers General Motors and Ford, French car companies PSA and Renault, Germany’s Volkswagen group …
Read More »Measles threat grows amid COVID-19 crisis: vaccine group
Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | With all eyes on the rapid global spread of the novel coronavirus, health experts fear a drop in routine vaccinations could fuel other, potentially deadlier outbreaks of diseases like measles. With nearly half of the world’s population told to stay at home, many parents are having to postpone taking their …
Read More »Kenya president sorry for coronavirus cop violence
Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Kenya’s president on Wednesday apologised for violence meted out by police following the declaration of a nationwide curfew last week to curb the spread of coronavirus. “I want to apologise to all Kenyans for… some excesses that were conducted,” President Uhuru Kenyatta said in a live …
Read More »Premier League accused of ‘moral vacuum’ as clubs cut staff wages
London, United Kingdom | AFP | Premier League clubs have been accused of living in a “moral vacuum”, with players urged to take their share of the financial hit from the coronavirus pandemic as non-playing staff begin to feel the pinch. Last year’s Champions League finalists Tottenham as well as Newcastle …
Read More »Africans rush for chloroquine as virus tsunami looms
Libreville, Gabon | AFP | Despite loud appeals for caution, Africans are rushing to embrace chloroquine, the venerable anti-malaria drug touted as a possible treatment for coronavirus. From hospitals in Senegal to pharmaceutical companies in South Africa and street sellers in Cameroon, chloroquine has fired hopes of a medicinal fix against …
Read More »Mulago developing guidelines for transferring COVID-19 patients to ICU
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Guidelines are being developed at the coronavirus isolation and treatment centre in Mulago to help health workers a make quick decisions on what kind of patient benefits from ICU services first, in case they are faced with multiple cases with serious symptoms. Dr Elizabeth …
Read More »Local governments directed to repair all non functional boreholes
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Ministry of Water and Environment has directed all local governments to repair all non-functional boreholes. The move is to ensure that all Ugandans can have access to water as the country battles an outbreak of coronavirus. According to the circular dated March 31, …
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