The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) reported 1,598 new infections of COVID-19 Saturday.
In a Twitter update via its verified handle, the government agency said there are now 108, 943 confirmed cases of the disease caused by the novel coronavirus in Nigeria.
A total of 85, 367 people it stated, have so far been discharged from hospital, while the number of deaths so far is 1,420.
As of Saturday, more than 94 million cases of COVID-19 had been reported worldwide, with more than 51.8 million of those considered recovered or resolved, according to Johns Hopkins University’s COVID-19 case tracking tool. The global death toll stood at just over two million.
Meanwhile, South Africa has delayed the start of its new school year by two weeks in order to prevent schools from becoming transmission centres for COVID-19, as new cases have hovered around 20,000 a day for the past week.
According to the CBC, the country has so far confirmed more than 1.29 million infections and registered more than 35,000 deaths — leading the continent on both counts.
The Canadian media organisation also reports that the World Health Organization (WHO) chief has pleaded with weary world to help break COVID-19 transmission.
As the global death toll from the coronavirus pushed past 2 million, the head of WHO urged people to use the tools they have to curb the virus and lift the burden on health workers.
Greece will loosen some lockdown restrictions on Monday, letting non-essential retail shops reopen for the first time in more than two months after signs that pressure on the public health system is easing.
The country, in a nationwide lockdown since November, has fared better than many other European states, despite its struggling health services, badly weakened by years of financial crisis.
The BBC reports that a further 1,295 deaths within 28 days of a positive COVID-19 test have been reported in the UK, the third-highest daily total since the pandemic began.
It brings the total number of deaths by this measure to 88,590.
There have also been a further 41,346 lab-confirmed cases, and 4,262 more people have been admitted to hospital.
Dr Yvonne Doyle, medical director for Public Health England, said the “continuous rise in cases and deaths should be a bitter warning for us all”.
“We must not forget the basics,” she added. “The lives of our friends and family depend on it.
“Keep your distance from others, wash your hands and wear a mask.”
