The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) reported 1,585 new infections of COVID-19 Saturday.
In a Twitter update via its verified handle, the government agency said there are now 99,063 confirmed cases of the disease caused by the novel coronavirus in Nigeria.
A total of 79,417 people it stated, have so far been discharged from hospital, while the number of deaths so far is 1,350.
As of Saturday, more than 88.9 million cases of COVID-19 had been reported worldwide, with more than 49.4 million of those considered recovered or resolved, according to Johns Hopkins University’s COVID-19 case tracking tool. The global death toll stood at more than 1.9 million.
In the Americas, according to the CBC, Mexico on Friday posted its third straight day of a new high for coronavirus infections, with 14,362 newly confirmed cases and a near-record of 1,038 more deaths. The country has now topped 1.5 million total infections and over 132,000 deaths so far in the pandemic. The country’s extremely low testing rate means that is an undercount, and official estimates suggest the real death toll is over 180,000.
In Europe, the United Kingdom Friday recorded its highest daily death toll, 1,325, as London declared a major incident, warning that its hospitals were at risk of being overwhelmed. With a highly transmissible new variant of the virus surging across Britain, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has shuttered the economy and is rushing out vaccines faster than the country’s European neighbours in a bid to stem the pandemic.
In the Asia-Pacific region, several regional governments in Japan have asked for a state of emergency declaration like the one issued by the prime minister to the Tokyo area to stem the surging rise in coronavirus cases. The heads of Osaka, Kyoto and Hyogo prefectures in central Japan relayed their request Saturday. There was no immediate decision, but the government panel of medical experts will study the situation. Japan’s state of emergency, which kicked in Friday for Tokyo and nearby Kanagawa, Saitama and Chiba, centers around asking restaurants and bars to close at 8 p.m. It lasts for a month but can be extended.
The B1-17 coronavirus variant, first discovered in the UK, is now in at least 40 countries, including Canada. It has 23 mutations, including one that attaches to healthy cells like a key going into a lock. 1:56
In China, authorities are asking residents in two cities south of Beijing to stay home for seven days as they try to stamp out a coronavirus outbreak in which more than 300 people have tested positive in the past week. According to official notices on social media, the cities of Shijiazhuang and Xingtai in Hebei province are restricting people to their communities and villages and have banned gatherings.
India will start its COVID-19 vaccination drive from Jan. 16 with priority given to about 30 million health care and front line workers, a government statement said on Saturday.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi reviewed the preparedness for COVID-19 vaccination program on Saturday, it said. India hopes to inoculate 300 million of its 1.35 billion people free of charge in the first six to eight months of this year.
