Africa to lose 20mn jobs due to coronavirus pandemic: African Union

A new study has found that about 20 million jobs are at risk in Africa due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic which continues to spread rapidly around the globe.

"Nearly 20 million jobs, both in the formal and informal sectors, are threatened with destruction on the continent if the situation continues," according to an African Union (AU) study.

The study — entitled "Impact of the coronavirus on the Africa economy" — said the continent’s economy will shrink this year due to the coronavirus.

The AU researchers said under a realistic scenario, Africa's economy will shrink 0.8%, while under a pessimistic scenario there would be a 1.1% dip.

African nations step up measures to contain COVID-19 outbreak

Several African governments close borders, cancel flights and impose strict entry and quarantine requirements to contain the coronavirus outbreak.

African governments could lose up to 20 to 30% of their fiscal revenue, estimated at 500 billion in 2019, the study found. 

Meanwhile, exports and imports are projected to drop at least 35% from 2019 levels, incurring a loss in the value of trade of around $270 billion.

Africa's oil producers will be among the worst hit, with Nigeria and Angola alone losing $65 billion in income.

African oil exporters are expected to see their budget deficits double this year while their economies shrink 3% on average.

Countries where tourism constitutes a large part of GDP will see their economies contract by an average of 3.3% this year.

"Under the average scenario, the tourism and travel sector in Africa could lose at least $50 billion due to the covid-19 pandemic and at least 2 million direct and indirect jobs," the AU study said.

"With economic activity in the doldrums in many advanced and emerging market countries, remittances to Africa could experience significant declines," it added.  

The novel coronavirus, known as COVID-19, is believed to have been emerged first in the central Chinese city of Wuhan late last year and is now spreading across the globe. 

Nearly 1,203,000 people are infected with the new coronavirus and more than 64,770 others have died of the disease caused by it around the world, according to data collected by Johns Hopkins University.

Analysts say the world economy is headed for a sharp downturn, where several countries could plunge into recession this year.

So far, Africa accounts for just a fraction of total cases of the disease, according to a Reuters tally.

China says it has sold nearly 4 billion masks abroad

China has sold nearly four billion masks to foreign countries since March, officials said Sunday, as they tried to stem widespread fears over the quality of medical exports.

Despite Chinese cases dwindling, Beijing has encouraged factories to increase production of medical supplies as the pandemic kills over 60,000 globally and parts of the world face a protective equipment shortage.

China has exported 3.86 billion masks, 37.5 million pieces of protective clothing, 16,000 ventilators and 2.84 million COVID-19 testing kits since March 1, customs official Jin Hai said, with orders to more than 50 countries.

She added the country's medical supply exports were valued at 10.2 billion yuan ($1.4 billion).

However numerous nations -- including the Netherlands, the Philippines, Croatia, Turkey and Spain -- have complained about substandard or faulty medical products shipped from China.

Last week, the Dutch government recalled 600,000 masks out of a Chinese shipment of 1.3 million that did not meet quality standards.

China said the manufacturer "stated clearly that (the masks) are non-surgical."

Spain also rejected thousands of rapid test kits sent by an unauthorized Chinese company after it found that they were unreliable last week.

Record COVID-19 deaths in Europe as global cases surpass 900,000

The novel coronavirus has killed a record number of people in a single day in at least two European countries.

Chinese officials hit back on Sunday at media reports over defective medical supplies, saying that they "did not reflect the full facts".

"In reality there are various factors, such as China having different standards and different usage habits to other countries. Even improper use can lead to doubts over quality," said Jiang Fan, an official with the Ministry of Commerce.

The comments echoed remarks from Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying, who over the past week has repeatedly urged Western media not to "politicize" or "hype up" the issue.

Earlier this week, Beijing tightened regulations for exported coronavirus medical equipment, requiring products to fulfill both domestic licensing standards and that of their destination countries.

China has also increased its production capacity of COVID-19 testing kits to over 4 million a day, said Zhang Qi, an official with the National Medical Products Administration.

Morocco to free over 5,000 prisoners to slow virus spread

Morocco's King Mohammed VI has pardoned more than 5,600 prisoners and ordered their release in stages to avoid contagion in the country's overcrowded jails.

The justice ministry said the 5,654 detainees that would be freed were selected based on their age, health, good conduct and length of detention.

They would be released in stages due to "exceptional circumstances linked to the emergency health situation and necessary precautions" against the virus, it said in a statement.

The decision came as the COVID-19 illness has officially killed 66 people and infected 960 in the North African country.

The king also ordered authorities to take "all the necessary measures to reinforce the protection of detainees in prisons" which are widely known to be overcrowded.

Morocco, home to 35 million people, has an estimated 232 detainees per 100,000 inhabitants.

Tokyo reports 143 new coronavirus cases, highest jump in one day  

Some 143 more cases of the novel coronavirus have been reported in Tokyo, the city's governor says, with the highest daily jump bringing the number of cases in the Japanese capital to more than 1,000.

Tokyo's metropolitan government has strongly urged people to stay home as the city of nearly 14 million has seen an uptick in the number of cases in recent days.

The number of cases with untraceable transmission routes had increased in recent days, Governor Yuriko Koike said in a livecast YouTube video on Sunday, adding it was worrying that there were a number of people who were infected at hospitals.

Elderly woman dies of coronavirus in Japan

A woman has died from the coronavirus in Japan, the first such death in the country since the epidemic spread from China.

The majority of confirmed COVID-19 cases over the weekend in Tokyo were of people under the age of 50, a member of Japan's health ministry taskforce for the virus said in the same livecast Sunday night, adding that many of them were in their 20s and 30s.

Tokyo's metropolitan government has repeatedly called on residents in the densely populated city to avoid all unnecessary outings.

Koike said in an earlier TV appearance that "lives were at stake".

Japan, with some 3,000 cases and 73 deaths as of Friday, has so far been spared the kind of explosive surge seen in Europe, the United States and elsewhere.

With the increase in cases in Tokyo, there have been growing calls from Tokyo's governor and groups representing medical professionals for the central government to call for a "state of emergency".

Unlike in some countries, that would give the government limited enforcement power.

Lebanese stranded abroad by coronavirus outbreak return home

Several flights carrying Lebanese stranded abroad by coronavirus lockdowns have begun arriving in Beirut, part of a trial run to see whether thousands looking to come home can be safely repatriated without worsening the country's outbreak.

Their return became a charged issue after powerful parliament speaker Nabih Berri threatened to suspend support for the government if it did not act quickly and other top figures urged immediate action.

Prime Minister Hassan Diab, speaking to reporters at Beirut international airport on Sunday, said about 21,000 Lebanese had registered for flights back to Lebanon.

Four flights on Sunday, from Riyadh, Abu Dhabi, Lagos and Abidjan, will return about 400 passengers, according to airport sources.

They will be tested for coronavirus at the airport and quarantined at hotels while awaiting results.

"Hopefully this cloud, the cloud that is the health situation with corona, passes quickly and infections are minimal for Lebanese whether at home or abroad," said Diab.

Lebanon has recorded 527 coronavirus cases and 17 deaths.

Lebanon said on Sunday it was tightening lockdown measures further to contain the viral contagion, restricting the movement of cars, trucks and motorcycles to three assigned days per week.

It has also shut most businesses and imposed an overnight curfew.

Swiss coronavirus death toll rises to 559, cases top 21,000

Switzerland's death toll from the coronavirus outbreak has risen by 19 to 559, the health ministry says.

The number of people testing positive increased to 21,100 from 20,278 on Saturday, it said on Sunday.  

Latest on coronavirus pandemic: Over 1.2 million people now infected

As of Saturday, nearly 1,203,000 people are infected with the new coronavirus and more than 64,770 others have died of the disease caused by it around the world.

Switzerland has tested more than 158,000 people for COVID-19.

Spain sees 3rd daily drop in coronavirus deaths

The rate of new coronavirus infections and deaths in Spain slowed again on Sunday as the country, suffering from one of the world's worst outbreaks of the pandemic, began its fourth week under a near-total lockdown.

Deaths from the highly infectious COVID-19 respiratory disease rose to 12,418 on Saturday - the second highest worldwide after Italy. However, the toll of 674 people who died during the past 24 hours was down from Saturday's 809 and well below Thursday's daily record of 950, the Health Ministry said.

Sunday's rise represented a 6% increase in total deaths, about half the rate reported a week ago.

The total number of registered infections rose to 130,759 from Saturday's 124,736.

"The data from this week and today confirms the slowing down of infections," Health Minister Salvador Illa told a news conference. "The data confirms that confinement is working."

He said one million testing kits were to arrive in Spain on Sunday and Monday and would act as "rapid screening" in places such as hospitals and nursing homes, part of an effort to pinpoint the true extent of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Defense Minister Margarita Robles told reporters: "This data is encouraging and hopeful".

The World Health Organization's director for Europe, Hans Kluge, tweeted about Spain: "Careful optimism as result of bold measures, innovative approaches & courageous decisions".

Government ministers cautioned it was too early to say when Spain could start lifting its lockdown on public life.

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