Tag: COVID-19

• Thursday, March 26th 2020 - 08:55 UTC

  Bolsonaro clashes with governors over lockdowns: “they are destroying Brazil”

  

  President Jair Bolsonaro on Wednesday blasted as criminals the governors and mayors of Brazil’s largest states and cities for imposing lockdowns to slow the coronavirus outbreak, as tensions with his health minister simmered. The death toll rose to 57 from 46 while confirmed cases rose to 2,433 from 2,201 the day before.

• Thursday, March 26th 2020 - 08:44 UTC

  South American countries agree to ensure smooth flow of goods and food supplies in the region

  

  Agriculture ministers from various South American countries participated in a video conference on Monday, March 23, to discuss harmonization of standards and ensure the smooth flow of goods and food supplies throughout the region during the Coronavirus pandemic.

• Thursday, March 26th 2020 - 08:40 UTC

  Spain extends state of emergency two weeks after it reported 783 deaths in one day

  

  Spain extended its state of emergency for two more weeks to allow the government to extend stringent lockdown measures in a desperate attempt to contain the coronavirus. Spain reported 738 new deaths in one day on Wednesday while Italy announced 683. The two countries have the highest fatality rate in the global pandemic.

• Thursday, March 26th 2020 - 08:27 UTC

  Argentina's “Children and youth protection project” receives US$ 300 million from World Bank

  

  The World Bank Board of Directors approved a new US$ 300 million operation to support Argentina’s efforts to strengthen its social protection system and minimize the impact of the crisis on the most vulnerable families.

• Thursday, March 26th 2020 - 08:25 UTC

  Pandemic: total lockdown in Colombia; Chile extends schools closure until May

  

  Countries across Latin America tightened measures on Wednesday to halt the spread of the deadly novel coronavirus, with more lockdowns and school closures as well as increased aid to the region's poorest.

• Thursday, March 26th 2020 - 08:01 UTC

  World Bank and IMF call on bilateral creditors to suspend payments from poor countries

  

  The World Bank Group and International Monetary Fund have issued the following joint statement to the G20 concerning debt relief for the poorest countries:

• Wednesday, March 25th 2020 - 08:56 UTC

  Pandemics: Bolsonaro and governors clash over priorities, the economy and jobs or public health

  

  Brazil's largest city of Sao Paulo began fifteen days of lockdown to fight the spread of the coronavirus on Tuesday. This after Brazil's own president, Jair Bolsonaro, has faced fierce criticism for his blasé treatment to combat the threat, which he describes as a quote “little flu.”

• Wednesday, March 25th 2020 - 08:54 UTC

  Some of the things Covid 19 can be expected to change

  

  By Gwynne Dyer – They teach you in journalism school never to use the phrase “…X has changed the world forever”. Or at least they should. Covid-19 is certainly not going to change the world forever, but it is going to change quite a few things, in some cases for a long time. Here’s eight of them, in no particular order.

• Wednesday, March 25th 2020 - 08:35 UTC

  Cruise vessel Zaandam prevented from disembarking in Chilean ports

  

  A cruise ship with more than 1,800 people aboard - including 42 complaining of flu-like symptoms - was prevented from docking in Chile due to fears over the coronavirus.

• Wednesday, March 25th 2020 - 08:30 UTC

  Bolsonaro calls Xi and defuses spat; Beijing pledges to help Brazil combat Covid 19

  

  Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro laid to rest a diplomatic spat with China in a call with President Xi Jinping on Tuesday, with the two agreeing to work together to fight coronavirus as Brazil’s largest city went into lockdown.