coronavirus pandemic - The African Mirror

Jun

16

2021

Soccer clubs embrace cryptocurrency, but fans are divided

TOM WILSON and ANNA IRRERA A growing number of major soccer clubs are launching digital coins that allow fans to vote on a variety of minor decisions as the sport faces slumping revenues caused by the coronavirus pandemic. But supporters are divided over the so-called fan tokens. Some appreciate the novel way to engage with their teams - and help make decisions, even if only on small-time matters such as the song played at matches after a goal is scored or images used on social media. Others dismiss the tokens as superficial participation that adds to the already growing costs…

Jun

12

2021

By The African Mirror

G7 eyes allocating $100 bln from IMF funds to COVID-ravaged nations

WORLD

THE United States and other Group of Seven nations are considering reallocating $100 billion from the International Monetary Fund's war chest to help countries struggling most to cope with the COVID-19 crisis, the White House said. The issue will be on the table when G7 leaders discuss how to help steer the world's recovery from the coronavirus pandemic at a three-day summit in Cornwall, southwestern England, which begins on Friday. "The United States and our G7 partners are actively considering a global effort to multiply the impact of the proposed Special Drawing Rights (SDR) allocation to the countries most in…

May

28

2021

By The African Mirror

Tracking the pandemic, vaccine rollouts

COVID-19

THE coronavirus pandemic continues to test humanitarian responses, while the world faces questions about how to ensure equal access to vaccines. Many countries are rolling out coronavirus vaccination plans, but it’s unclear when – and in some cases, how – these vaccines will reach people caught in crisis zones. The COVID-19 pandemic is driving record-breaking humanitarian needs: Global aid response plans total more than $35 billion this year. Below you’ll find data exploring coronavirus trends and vaccine issues in key crisis areas, a table showing the worldwide picture, and a global map with select stories. Data on this page is updated once a…

May

23

2021

By The African Mirror

Gaza conflict forces reordering of Biden’s policy priorities

WORLD

MATT SPETALNICK, HUMEYRA PAMUK and PATRICIA ZENGERLE U.S. President Joe Biden took office in January determined to focus his time and energy on the coronavirus pandemic and economic downturn at home and big challenges such as China, Russia and Iran abroad. But after a Gaza conflict that required intensive behind-the-scenes U.S. diplomacy, his aides are having to reorder their priorities as they seek to stabilize an Israel-Hamas ceasefire, craft a reconstruction aid plan for the Palestinians and prevent a recurrence of what became Biden's first foreign policy crisis. The focus, one U.S. official said, is on "what would come next,…

May

15

2021

By The African Mirror

Where are the women? How pandemic decisions are ingraining global gender bias

COVID-19

RAQUEL LAGUNAS THERE are teams of experts around the world right now tackling the coronavirus pandemic, providing pathways to put an end to this deadly global scourge and charting the course for recovery. These task forces comprise health experts, economic leaders, policymakers, and more to ensure the best holistic solutions are put forward. But what they don’t have is gender balance and, in some cases, any women at all. There are three men to every woman on national COVID-19 task forces around the world, according to recent data from the United Nations Development Programme, UN Women and the University of Pittsburgh. The…

Apr

26

2021

By The African Mirror

Covid-19 locks down therapy support

NEWS

IGNATIUS BANDA BEFORE Zimbabwe imposed lockdown measures last March as part of global efforts to curb the coronavirus pandemic, Grace Mashingaidze* would attend workshops in Harare arranged by a nongovernmental organisation assisting trafficked women who had safely made it back home. A survivor of trafficking, the 27-year-old Mashingaidze told IPS she joined a group of other young female survivors and had received assistance that ranged from counselling, psychosocial support and self-sufficiency skills. The latter was important as many of the young women struggled to earn an income in a country already suffocated by high levels of unemployment. “It has been…

Apr

20

2021

By The African Mirror

South Africa’s vaccine compensation fund could cost $17.5 million in first year

COVID-19

THE South African government's compensation fund to cover potential injuries from COVID-19 vaccines could cost around 250 million rands ($17.5 million) in the first year, the health minister said in response to questions in parliament. The African country hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic in terms of infections and deaths told vaccine manufacturers Johnson & Johnson and Pfizer it would set up the fund during negotiations to buy shots. "A contingent liability of approximately R250 million for the first year would be provided for compensation of vaccine injury in a COVID-19 Vaccine NFC (no-fault compensation) Fund," Health Minister Zweli Mkhize…

Apr

19

2021

By The African Mirror

Oscars show reinvented as a movie — with masks, longer speeches

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

JILL SERJEANT THE Oscars ceremony next week will have the look and feel of a movie, giving winners more time for speeches, while coronavirus masks will play a major role, producers of the show said on Saturday. The coronavirus pandemic and a trio of new producers have led to a reinvention of the traditional show where the world's highest movie honours are handed out before a seated theatre audience of more than 4,000 A-list stars and industry executives. Much of the April 25 ceremony will instead be held at the Art Deco Union Station in downtown Los Angeles, where a…

Apr

13

2021

By The African Mirror

Coronavirus pandemic ‘a long way from over’

COVID-19

CONFUSION and complacency in addressing COVID-19 means the pandemic is a long way from over, but it can be brought under control in months with proven public health measures, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has said. So far some 780 million vaccines have been administered globally, but measures including wearing masks and maintaining physical distancing must be applied to reverse the trajectory. "We too want to see societies and economies reopening, and travel and trade resuming," Tedros told a news briefing. "But right now, intensive care units in many countries are overflowing and people are dying – and it's totally…

Apr

08

2021

By The African Mirror

Five human rights wins in a year marked by COVID-19 backsliding

HUMAN RIGHTS

SONIA ELKS THE coronavirus pandemic deepened entrenched inequalities and took an especially heavy toll on the most vulnerable, but in a grim year there were some notable wins for human rights, Amnesty International said on Wednesday. From Black Lives Matter protests showcasing people power to climate lawsuits holding corporations to account and a groundswell of action to fight violence against women, the rights group highlighted bright spots in its annual report on the state of human rights worldwide. Here are five of the human rights wins and positive trends identified by Amnesty: 1. Black Lives Matter protests The death of George Floyd…