290m students out of school as world battles deadly virus
Governments around the world scramble to contain the spread of coronavirus; Switzerland says a 74-year-old woman infected with COVID-19 has died, the first reported death in the country
Almost 300 million students worldwide faced weeks at home on Thursday with Italy the latest country to shut schools over the deadly new coronavirus, as the IMF urged an all-out global offensive against the epidemic.
The death toll from an outbreak of coronavirus in the northern Italian region of Lombardy, which has borne the brunt of a nationwide contagion, has risen over the past day to 98 from 73, a local official said on Thursday.
More than 95,000 people have been infected and over 3,200 have died worldwide from the virus, which has now reached some 80 countries and territories.
The vast majority of global deaths and infections are in China, where the virus first emerged late last year, prompting the country to quarantine entire cities, temporarily shut factories and close schools indefinitely.
As the virus has spread, other countries have also implemented extraordinary measures, with Unesco saying on Wednesday that 13 countries have closed schools, affecting 290.5 million children, while nine others have implemented localised closures.
While temporary school closures during crises are not new, Unesco chief Audrey Azoulay said, “the global scale and speed of the current educational disruption is unparalleled and, if prolonged, could threaten the right to education.”
Italy on wednesday ordered schools and universities shut until March 15, ramping up its response as the national death toll rose to 107, the deadliest outbreak outside China.
Some 120 schools closed in France this week. The German health minister said the outbreak was now a “global pandemic” — a term the World Health Organisation (WHO) has stopped short of using — meaning the virus is spreading in several regions through local transmission.
Infections are now rising faster abroad than they are in China, where 31 more deaths and 139 new cases were reported on Thursday. China’s death toll now stands at 3,012, with over 80,000 infections.
Stock markets have rumbled over fears of recession, but Asian shares extended gains on Thursday after a surge on Wall Street buoyed by global stimulus measures.
The IMF said it was making $50 billion in aid available for low-income and emerging-market countries to fight the epidemic, which it sees as a “serious threat” that would slow global growth to below last year’s 2.9 per cent.
“At a time of uncertainty... it is better to do more than to do not enough,” IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva said, calling the epidemic “is a global problem calling for global response.”
In the United States, lawmakers reached a deal to provide more than $8 billion to fight the outbreak.
Governments are scrambling to contain the spread of the virus.
The outbreak in Italy has swelled despite tough measures, including quarantining 11 towns with 50,000 people.
New measures include a month-long nationwide ban on fan attendance at sports events, and advising people to avoid greetings like kissing on the cheek or shaking hands.
Prime Minister Giuseppe Conti said Italy could tackle the outbreak as long as it remained contained.
“But in case of exponential growth, not just Italy but any other country in the world would not be able to manage the situation,” he said.
In Iran, where 92 people have died from the disease, schools have been shut and major cultural and sporting events suspended.
Even cinema is not immune — the producers of the latest James Bond film pushed back the release of the forthcoming “No Time To Die” from April to November over virus fears.
Authorities in Switzerland said a 74-year-old woman infected with COVID-19 has died, the first death due to the new virus reported in the country.
The Federal Office of Public Health said that the death was reported by authorities in the western canton of Vaud.
Britain is moving into the second of four phases in its battle plan to tackle the spread of coronavirus, England’s Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty said on Thursday, after confirmed cases jumped across the country.
The global coronavirus outbreak is emerging as a potential stumbling block for New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s re-election plans, with a poll on Thursday showing unease over her government’s handling of the crisis.