A woman walks past a poster showing precautions against the Covid-19 coronavirus at a subway station in Seoul on April 15, 2022. (JUNG YEON-JE / AFP)
NEW DELHI / KUALA LUMPUR / WELLINGTON – South Korea reported 57,464 more COVID-19 cases as of midnight Wednesday compared to 24 hours ago, raising the total number of infections to 17,144,065, the health authorities said Thursday.
The daily caseload was down from 76,787 the previous day and lower than 90,852 tallied a week earlier, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency
The daily caseload was down from 76,787 the previous day and lower than 90,852 tallied a week earlier, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency.
The health authorities believed that the daily caseload has been on the decline following the Omicron variant-driven resurgence, which may have peaked in the middle of March.
Among the new cases, 21 were imported from overseas, lifting the total to 31,898.
The number of infected people who were in a serious condition stood at 552, up 6 from the previous day.
A total of 122 more deaths were confirmed, leaving the death toll at 22,588. The total fatality rate was 0.13 percent.
The number of people who received two doses of COVID-19 vaccines was 44,541,878, or 86.8 percent of the total population, and the figure for those getting booster jabs was 33,092,096 people, or 64.5 percent of the population.
Kuwaiti
The Kuwaiti government announced on Wednesday that the country has decided to lift all COVID-19 restrictions starting May 1.
The wearing of face masks is no longer mandatory but an option, both indoors and outdoors, said the government spokesman Tareq Al-Mezrem at a press conference.
The PCR test is no longer required for all arrivals, regardless of their immunization status, he added.
Meanwhile, all individuals, vaccinated or unvaccinated, are allowed to enter all enclosed public places, regardless of immunization status and with no PCR test needed, Al-Mezrem told the press conference.
This handout photograph released by India's Press Information Bureau shows Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks during a via virtual meeting with leaders of central Asian countries, in New Delhi, India, Jan 27, 2022. (PRESS INFORMATION BUREAU VIA AP)
India
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said the COVID-19 challenge was not over yet, and that there was an urgent need to vaccinate all eligible children against the pandemic in the country.
India's COVID-19 tally rose to 43,065,496 on Wednesday with 2,927 new cases registered during the past 24 hours across the South Asian country, showed official data
Amid a sudden rise in COVID-19 cases over the past few days, Modi held a virtual meeting of chief ministers of all states to review the evolving situation.
"It is clear that Corona challenge is not fully over. Our priority is to vaccinate all eligible children at the earliest. Special campaigns will also be needed in schools," said Modi at the virtual meeting.
"India fought a long battle against COVID-19 in the spirit of cooperative federalism. We have to implement our strategy of test, track and treat with efficacy," said Modi in his interaction with the state chief ministers.
He also said, "We have seen the way Omicron and its sub-variants created a serious situation in the European countries. Some countries have faced a surge in pandemic cases due to these sub-variants. Compared to these countries we Indians have kept the situation under control and the overall situation is far better here."
"Despite all this, cases have been on the rise over the past two weeks in some of our states. We have to remain alert. We fought against the Omicron wave effectively without panicking," the prime minister added.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said that in recent days the national capital had witnessed a high positivity rate of COVID-19 and a surge in the number of cases.
He also noted that face masks have been made mandatory once again in the capital region in response to a rise in active cases.
India's COVID-19 tally rose to 43,065,496 on Wednesday with 2,927 new cases registered during the past 24 hours across the South Asian country, showed official data.
Malaysia
Malaysia will ease more COVID-19 curbs from the start of next month, including lifting restrictions on those who are not vaccinated against the coronavirus and scrapping the need to wear masks outdoors, its health minister said.
The Southeast Asian nation has seen some of the worst COVID-19 outbreaks in the region, but infection surges have since subsided amid a ramped up vaccination programme.
Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said on Wednesday people will now be able to enter public premises regardless of their vaccination status, except those who have tested positive for COVID-19 or unvaccinated travellers undergoing quarantine.
Malaysia will also remove pre-flight and on-arrival testing requirements for fully vaccinated travellers and those who have just recovered from COVID-19, Khairy said.
Masks will remain mandatory for indoor activities and on public transport, he said.
New Zealand
New Zealand recorded 9,047 new community cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, the country's Ministry of Health said in a statement.
Of the new community infections, 2,519 were detected in the largest city of Auckland. In addition, 80 new cases of COVID-19 were detected at the New Zealand border, said the ministry.
Currently, 484 patients are being treated in New Zealand hospitals, including 15 in intensive care units. The ministry also reported 13 more deaths from COVID-19.
New Zealand has reported 912,490 confirmed cases of COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic in the country.
Samoa
Samoa reported 644 new community cases of COVID-19 in the last 48 hours, bringing the total number of such COVID-19 cases in the South Pacific island nation to 8,923.
According to the newspaper Samoa Observer, the Ministry of Health confirmed on Thursday that 91 percent of the new COVID-19 cases are from Upolu, Samoa's second largest island, with 8.9 percent in Savai'i, the largest island of Samoa.
The ministry urged the public to remain vigilant against the pandemic and adhere to public health advice such as wearing face masks, maintaining social distance in public places and ensuring personal hygiene at all times.
The ministry also urged the public to receive their second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine and booster dose as vaccination remains the best defence against COVID-19.
Currently, 92.3 percent of the people aged 18 and above in Samoa have received their second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine while 67,244 people of the age group have received their booster dose.
Samoa has so far reported a total of 16 COVID-19 related deaths.