Covid cases may top 200 million in 2 weeks: WHO

THE UN HEALTH AGENCY HAS SAID IN ITS WEEKLY UPDATE THAT THE DELTA VARIANT IS NOW PRESENT IN 132 COUNTRIES

GENEVA: The World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday said in its weekly epidemiological update that going by the increasing pace at which Covid-19 cases are rising globally, the number of infections could exceed 200 million in about two weeks’ time.

The UN health agency also said the number of coronavirus deaths globally has jumped by 21% over the previous week, with the Delta variant now reported in 132 countries.

“Globally, cases of the Alpha variant have been reported in 182 countries, while 131 countries have reported cases of the Beta variant; 81 countries have reported cases of the Gamma variant; and 132 countries have reported cases of the Delta variant,” it said.

The WHO said “if these trends continue, the cumulative number of cases reported globally could exceed 200 million in the next two weeks”.

The UN agency also noted that Covid-19 cases rose by 8% worldwide over the previous week, while most of the 69,000 deaths in the last one-week period were reported in the Americas and Southeast Asia.

It added that the number of Covid-19 deaths increased in all regions except for Europe. The biggest spike in cases were reported in the US, Brazil, Indonesia, the UK and India.

Germany said that 50.2% of its population has now been fully vaccinated, a milestone in a campaign that has slowed in recent weeks.

Meanwhile, South Korea reported a new daily high for cases a day after authorities enforced restrictions in areas outside Seoul. The 1,896 cases announced on Wednesday were the highest daily jump since the pandemic began and surpassed a previous record of 1,842 from last Thursday.

In Japan, Tokyo reported 3,177 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, setting an all-time high and exceeding 3,000 for the first time days after the start of the ongoing Olympics.

In Canada, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his government has received enough vaccine doses to inoculate all eligible Canadians against Covid-19 two months earlier than the September deadline. Meanwhile, with vaccines aplenty, the province of Quebec has taken the extraordinary step of offering a third dose to those who need it for travel purposes.

The US, meanwhile, is weighing a requirement for government workers to get vaccinated.