The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) reported 1,074 new infections of COVID-19 Friday.
In a Twitter update via its verified handle, the government agency said there are now 88,587 confirmed cases of the disease caused by the novel coronavirus in Nigeria.
A total number of 74,373 people it said, have so far been discharged from hospital, while the number of deaths so far is 1,294.
As of Friday, more than 83.9 million cases of COVID-19 had been reported worldwide with more than 47.2 million cases considered recovered or resolved, according to Johns Hopkins University’s tracking tool. The global death toll stood at more than 1.8 million.
The World Health Organization has reportedly cleared the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine for emergency use, meaning poorer countries may soon get access to the shot already available in Europe and North America.
According to the CBC, the UN health agency said its review found the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, which has already received clearance in the United States, Britain, Canada, the European Union and a dozen other countries, “met the must-have criteria for safety and efficacy set out by WHO.”
British medical workers warned Friday that hospitals around the country face a perilous situation in January, amid surging coronavirus infections blamed on a new virus variant. Authorities pressed to reactivate field hospitals previously mothballed just to handle the crush of new patients.
The United Kingdom recorded a further 53,285 cases of COVID-19 and 613 deaths on Friday, the fourth day running that it has topped 50,000 cases, official data showed.
France’s nationwide overnight curfew to limit coronavirus infections is being extended by two extra hours in 15 regions in the east of the country where cases have been surging.All travellers entering Norway will have to take a COVID-19 test within 24 hours of arrival from Jan. 2, the country’s justice ministry said.
The Philippines will prohibit the entry of foreign travellers from the United States effective Jan. 3 until Jan. 15, President Rodrigo Duterte’s spokesperson said on Friday, after the more infectious new variant of the coronavirus was detected in Florida.
Two major airports in northeastern China are requiring departing passengers to show a negative coronavirus test taken over the previous 72 hours before they can board their planes.
The Thai capital is shutting down venues including schools and entertainment parks as coronavirus cases continue to spread. Thailand reported 279 new cases on Friday including two deaths.
Brazil’s COVID-19 death toll topped 195,000 after the health ministry reported 462 deaths in the past 24 hours, as well as 24,605 additional confirmed cases.
The country has now registered more than 7.7 million cases since the pandemic began, according to ministry data, in the world’s third-worst outbreak after the United States and India.
Chad has locked down its capital N’djamena for the first time since the outbreak of the pandemic and has declared a dusk to dawn curfew due to a rise in infections.
Israel said it has vaccinated one million people against COVID-19, more than a tenth of its population, as it rolls out one of the world’s earliest and most rapid inoculation campaigns.
Iranian media said Thursday the country is negotiating the purchase of coronavirus vaccines from China. The number of confirmed US coronavirus cases has surpassed 20 million, according to data from Johns Hopkins University, as officials race to vaccinate millions of Americans but have come off to a slow start.
The United States exceeded the mark Friday, less than a week after it reached 19 million cases. That’s nearly twice as many as the No. 2 country, India, and nearly a quarter of the more than 83 million cases globally.