World leaders have rallied around the United Nations for an initiative to help the most vulnerable countries gain access to vaccines, diagnostics and treatment tools for the coronavirus as soon as they emerge. Noticeably absent: The United States, which is the hardest hist country in the world, and China, where the virus first appeared.
The World Health Organization’s chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the agency is teaming up with countries and partners worldwide to accelerate work on drugs and a vaccine for COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.
Africa’s coronavirus cases have surged 43 percent in the past week but its countries are dangerously behind in the global race for scarce medical equipment. Ten nations have no ventilators at all. John Nkengasong, director of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the continent is competing with the developed world in terms of obtaining supplies and equipment. “The very future of the continent will depend on how this matter is handled.”
The death toll in the United States surpassed 51,000 amid more than 890,000 cases. But the number of daily deaths in New York has gone down, with 422 reported on Friday – the lowest since April 1. Meanwhile, China reported it has not had a new death from the virus in 10 days.
Close to 196,000 people have died due to the pandemic, with 2.7 million infected globally, out of whom almost some 781,000 have recovered.