Day: July 10, 2021

The National Taskforce Committee for Covid-19 Prevention and Control has placed the number of new Covid-19 infections recorded nationwide over the past 24 hours at 93 with 45 cases each reported in Savannakhet and Champassak, two in Bokeo and one in Khammuan.

Of the total, 91 were imported cases including 45 in Savannakhet, 43 in Champassak, two in Bokeo, and one in Khammuan.

Two local transmissions were recorded in Champassak.

The new infections have brought the total accumulated since March 2020 to 2,630 including 453 active cases and three deaths.

Source: Lao News Agency

More countries and communities are recognizing the need to bolster efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in light of the toll the COVID-19 pandemic has taken on people around the world according to The Sustainable Development Goals Report 2021, released by the United Nations on Jul 6.

The decisions and actions taken during the next 18 months will determine whether pandemic recovery plans will put the world on a course to reach the globally agreed-upon goals that aim to boost economic growth and social well-being while protecting the environment.

According to the report, which tracks global efforts to achieve the SDGs, COVID-19 has caused a major disruption to people’s lives and livelihoods. While progress to achieve the SDGs had been slow even before the pandemic struck, an additional 119-124 million people were pushed back into poverty in 2020.

An equivalent of 255 million full-time jobs were lost, and the number of people suffering from hunger, which was already climbing before the pandemic, may have increased by 83-132 million.

The pandemic has exposed and intensified inequalities within and among countries. As of Jun 17, 2021, around 68 vaccines were administered for every 100 people in Europe and Northern America compared with fewer than 2 in sub-Saharan Africa. Up to 10 million more girls will be at risk of child marriage as a result of the pandemic over the next decade.

The collapse of international tourism disproportionally affects Small Island Developing States.

The economic slowdown in 2020 had done little to slow the climate crisis. Concentrations of major greenhouse gases continued to increase, while the global average temperature was about 1.2°C above pre-industrial levels, dangerously close to the 1.5°C limit established in the Paris Agreement.

Global flows of foreign direct investment fell by 40% in 2020 compared to 2019. The pandemic has brought immense financial challenges, especially for developing countries – with a significant rise in debt distress.

The 2030 Agenda, adopted by all United Nations Member States in 2015, provides a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future.

At its heart are the 17 Goals, to improve health and education, reduce inequality, and spur economic growth – all while tackling climate change and working to preserve our oceans and forests.

According to the Report, to get the SDGs back on track, governments, cities, business and industries have to use the recovery to adopt low-carbon, resilient and inclusive development pathways that will reduce carbon emissions, conserve natural resources, create better jobs, advance gender equality and tackle growing inequities.

“We are at a critical juncture in human history. The decisions and actions we take today will have momentous consequences for future generations,” said Liu Zhenmin, Under-Secretary-General of the | United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. “Lessons learned from the pandemic will help us rise to current and future challenges. Let us seize the moment together to make this a decade of action, transformation and restoration to achieve the SDGs and make good on the Paris Climate Agreement.”

Efforts to confront the pandemic have also shown immense community resilience, decisive action from governments, a rapid expansion of social protection, an acceleration of digital transformation; and a unique collaboration to develop life-saving vaccines and treatments in record time. According to the Report, these are solid foundations to build on to accelerate progress on the SDGs.

Some additional key facts and figures:

-The global extreme poverty rate rose for the first time since 1998, from 8.4% in 2019 to 9.5% in 2020.

-Between 1 February and 31 December 2020, Governments around the world announced more than 1,600 social protection measures, mostly short-term, in response to the COVID-19 crisis.

-Pandemic-related shocks are likely to trigger a rise in stunting, which already affects more than one in five children.

-The pandemic has halted or reversed progress in health and poses major threats beyond the disease itself. About 90% of countries are still reporting one or more disruptions to essential health services.

-The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on schooling is a ‘generational catastrophe.’ An additional 101 million children and youth fell below the minimum reading proficiency level, wiping out the education gains achieved over the last two decades.

-The COVID-19 pandemic has adversely affected progress towards gender equality: violence against women and girls has intensified; child marriage is expected to increase; and women have suffered a disproportionate share of job losses and increased care work at home.

-759 million people remained without electricity and one third of the global population lacked clean cooking fuels and technologies in 2019.

-An economic recovery is under way, led by China and the United States, but for many other countries, economic growth is not expected to return to pre-pandemic levels before 2022 or 2023.

-The world fell short on 2020 targets to halt biodiversity loss and 10 million hectares of forest being lost each year between 2015-2020.

-While net official development assistance increased in 2020 to a total of US$161 billion, this still falls well short of what is needed to respond to the COVID-19 crisis and to meet the long-established target of 0.7% of GNI.

-In 2020, 132 countries and territories reported that they were implementing a national statistical plan, with 84 having plans that were fully funded. Only 4 out of the 46 LDCs reported having fully funded national statistical plans.

According to the Report, the recovery effort will also depend on the availability of data to inform policy making. Ensuring sufficient funding is available for data collection, both through the mobilization of international and domestic resources, will be critical to these efforts.

COVID-19 will have an unprecedented impact on SDG progress also in the Lao PDR. Although the country has managed the pandemic well to date, the indirect impact of the slowing global and regional economies will be felt for many years. With the resources being diverted for addressing the immediate impact of the pandemic, the resource envelope for the SDGs and for funding the 9th National Socio-Economic Development Plan under formulation, is likely to be challenging and further prioritization will be critical to ensure that no one is left behind.

The Lao PDR is committed to the 2030 Agenda and the achievement of SDGs. It was one of the earliest countries to localise SDGs and integrate them into the national development planning framework. In recognition of the development challenge posed by UXO, the country has also adopted a specific SDG 18: Lives safe from UXO. The country endorsed a set of 238 National SDG indicators in June 2019.

The Lao PDR’s commitment to the 2030 Agenda and achievement of SDGs is further reflected in the institutional mechanisms the country has created to monitor, mainstream and coordinate SDGs. In September 2017, the President of the Lao PDR appointed the Prime Minister to chair the National Steering Committee for SDG Implementation. Committee members are drawn from various ministries, Government agencies and mass organisations.

The Lao PDR collaborates with the UN and other international organizations, for support to accelerate progress in the achievement of SDGs. The country has thus successfully created a broad-based coalition of partners towards the 2030 Agenda.

Source: Lao News Agency

BLANTRYE, MALAWI – The World Health Organization and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control have designated Malawi a COVID-19 high risk country, and they are warning people against traveling to the southern African nation. The warning follows a surge in COVID-19 cases in a third wave of the pandemic.

Malawi is facing an unprecedented rise in COVID-19 cases in its third wave of the coronavirus pandemic, with an infection rate of 22%. That’s up from about 2 percent in May.

Statistics from the Ministry of Health released Friday show that for the previous 24 hours, Malawi confirmed 451 new COVID-19 cases and seven deaths.

In Its travel notice this week, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advised people to avoid traveling to Malawi.

It says if travel is necessary, individuals must make sure they are fully vaccinated before making the trip.

The CDC also says in the current situation in Malawi, even fully vaccinated travelers may be at risk of getting and spreading COVID-19 variants.

The World Health Organization has added Malawi to a list of African countries that expose people to a high risk of COVID-19 infection.

George Jobe is the executive director of the Health Equity Network. He says although the CDC’s travel notice was not expected, it hasn’t come as a surprise, considering the recent surge in COVID-19 cases.

“Therefore, declaration should be an eye-opener for Malawians to be very strict, observing the regulations that we have, and also for Malawi to enforce compliance of the regulations,” said Jobe. “That is what we need, especially that only 1 percent of Malawians have been vaccinated. Therefore, we are still prone to serious infections”

Malawi Health Minister Khumbize Kandodo Chiponda told a local radio station the announcement is not surprising and said it would affect the country’s tourism sector.

Economists say although the travel notice is logical, they nonetheless worry it will have a negative impact on the country, which depends greatly on international trade.

Betchani Tchereni is a professor of economics at the Malawi University of Business and Applied Sciences.

“If travel restrictions are being placed against us, we are going to face problems with having people to be attracted to come to Malawi for tourism purposes,” said Tchereni. “The second thing is, we want to attract the best investors from elsewhere, but if people cannot come here because they feel there is high risk of COVID-19, or indeed because they have been advised so, then you have problem. Remember, we are busy creating jobs in this country.”

To curb the pandemic, the Malawi government has reintroduced strict COVID-19 preventive measures. Restrictions include a ban on political rallies, no fans at stadiums for football games, no gatherings of more than 50 people, and a curfew from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m.

But Tchereni said Malawi has never been serious about enforcing the measures.

“Look, we have never been as very serious in Malawi. We have always said people should not gather, but have you been to markets? People are gathering in markets. People are gathering in schools, are everywhere people are doing so many things,” said Tchereni. “Yes, it is because of the nature of our economy, but you see what, we are going to lose lives and that is not good for the economy.”

The government says it has engaged the police and the military to help enforce the measures.

For example, police officers say that on Friday alone, they arrested about 40 people in a crackdown on those ignoring COVID-19 preventive measures.

Source: Voice of America

Tennessee health officials say a small cluster of coronavirus infections has been linked to the June meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention in Nashville, according to The Tennessean.

Epidemiologist Leslie Waller of Nashville’s Metro Public Health Department told the newspaper that about 10 infections had been found, but that the cluster was almost certainly larger. About 18,000 people attended the two-day annual meeting and then returned to their home states, the newspaper reported Friday.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has asked health officials to contact the Tennessee department if they find other cases, according to The Associated Press.

Nashville had lifted its mask mandate and restrictions on large gatherings about a month before the convention, which filled the city’s indoor convention hall.

Disinclined to get vaccinated

Those who attended were not likely to have been vaccinated. A March poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that 40% of white evangelical Protestants said they likely wouldn’t get vaccinated, compared with 25% of all Americans, 28% of white mainline Protestants and 27% of nonwhite Protestants.

A spokesman for the Southern Baptist Convention’s executive committee said it had not told attendees about the infections but was working with health officials to determine what to do.

Infection clusters

Separately, Georgetown University researchers found clusters of coronavirus infections in 30 counties that have large populations and low vaccination rates, CNN reported Friday.

What the university researchers described as the five most significant clusters, CNN said, cover large parts of eight states: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Missouri, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Texas.

Coronavirus cases are rising in more than half of U.S. states, and hospitalizations are up in 17 states, with patients who are almost entirely unvaccinated, CBS News reported Saturday. About half of all new cases, 52%, are attributable to the delta variant.

“We’re seeing people that are extremely sick with it,” Dr. Greg Gardner, chief of emergency medicine at Mountain West Hospital in Tooele, Utah, told CBS. “We haven’t seen anybody that has been vaccinated.”

According to the CDC, as of Saturday, 158,954,417 Americans were fully vaccinated against COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.

Rolling average rises

Also on Saturday, the CDC’s seven-day rolling average showed an increase of 16% in new cases from the previous seven-day measure.

During Thursday’s weekly White House COVID Response Team briefing, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said the statistics showed “two truths”: The nation’s vaccination effort is significantly driving down cases, hospitalizations and deaths from COVID-19 from their January peaks, but the areas with the lowest vaccination rates have the highest rates of new cases and highest percentages of the more contagious delta variant of the virus.

Source: Voice of America

SAN FRANCISCO – Firefighters struggled to contain an exploding Northern California wildfire under blazing temperatures as another heat wave hits the U.S. West this weekend, prompting an excessive heat warning for inland and desert areas.

On Friday, Death Valley National Park in California recorded a staggering high of 54 Celsius (130 degrees Fahrenheit). If verified, the temperature would be the highest recorded there since July 1913, when the same Furnace Creek desert area hit 57 C (134 F), considered the highest reliably measured temperature on Earth.

The Beckwourth Complex — two lightning-caused fires burning 72 kilometers (45 miles) north of Lake Tahoe — showed no sign of slowing its rush northeast from the Sierra Nevada forest region after doubling in size between Friday and Saturday.

Evacuation orders

California’s northern mountain areas have seen several large fires that have destroyed more than a dozen homes. Although there are no confirmed reports of building damage, the fire prompted evacuation orders or warnings for about 2,800 people along with the closure of nearly 518 square kilometers (200 square miles) of Plumas National Forest.

On Friday, hot rising air formed a gigantic, smoky pyrocumulus cloud that reached thousands of feet high and created its own lightning, fire information officer Lisa Cox said.

Spot fires caused by embers leaped up to 1.6 kilometers (1 mile) ahead of the northeastern flank — too far for firefighters to safely battle, and winds funneled the fire up draws and canyons full of dry fuel, where “it can actually pick up speed,” Cox said. The flames rose up to 31 meters (100 feet) in some places, forcing firefighters to focus instead on building dozer lines to protect homes.

Firefighters usually take advantage of cooler, more humid nights to advance on a fire, Cox said, but the heat and low humidity never let up. The more than 1,200 firefighters were aided by aircraft, but the blaze was expected to continue forging ahead.

The air was so dry that some of the water dropped by aircraft evaporated before reaching the ground, she added.

“We’re expecting more of the same the day after and the day after and the day after,” Cox said.

The blaze, which was only 8% contained, increased dramatically to 222 square kilometers (86 square miles) after fire officials made better observations.

It was one of several threatening homes across Western states, which were expected to see record heat through the weekend as high-pressure blankets the region.

The National Weather Service warned the dangerous conditions could cause heat-related illnesses, while California’s power grid operator issued a statewide flex alert from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday to avoid disruptions and rolling blackouts.

The California Independent System Operator (ISO) warned of potential power shortage, not only because of mounting heat but also because a wildfire in southern Oregon was threatening transmission lines that carry power to California. Governor Gavin Newsom issued an emergency proclamation on Friday suspending some rules to allow for more power capacity and ISO requested emergency assistance from other states.

Pushed by strong winds, the Oregon fire doubled in size to 311 square kilometers (120 square miles) on Saturday as it raced through heavy timber in the Fremont-Winema National Forest near the Klamath County town of Sprague River.

Conservation urged in Nevada

NV Energy, Nevada’s largest power provider, also urged customers to conserve electricity Saturday and Sunday evenings because of the heat wave and wildfires affecting transmission lines throughout the region.

In Southern California, a brush fire sparked by a burning semitrailer truck in eastern San Diego County forced evacuations of two Native American reservations Saturday.

In Idaho, Governor Brad Little declared a wildfire emergency Friday and mobilized the state’s National Guard to help fight fires sparked after lightning storms swept across the drought-stricken region.

Fire crews in north-central Idaho were facing extreme conditions and gusts as they fought two wildfires covering a combined 50.5 square kilometers (19.5 square miles). The blazes threatened homes and forced evacuations in the tiny, remote community of Dixie about 64 kilometers (40 miles) southeast of Grangeville.

Source: Voice of America