Still unexplained
The hunt for the origins of Covid-19 has for the past four years been a tangled web of politics, power struggles, and international finger-pointing.
The total number of confirmed cases in Bangladesh reached 70 on Saturday with the emergence of nine new cases, the biggest jump in a a 24-hour period, according to a health official.
Meerjady Sabrina Flora, head of the country’s Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR) said that the country’s COVID-19 death toll rose to eight, with two more fatalities,
Samples from 434 persons were tested in the last 24 hours across the country, the health official said.
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Earlier this week, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina signalled that the shutdown of offices and workplaces due to the deadly virus may be extended to April 9.
Last week, the country had announced a stimulus package of 50 billion taka ($5.9 million) to help export-oriented industries to counter the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic at home and abroad.
Meanwhile, the World Bank has approved a fast-track $100 million financing to help Bangladesh fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.
The World Bank project aims to help Bangladesh prevent, detect, and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and strengthen its national systems for public health emergencies.
“This project will support the implementation of Bangladesh’s national plan to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic,” said the bank.
Earlier, following the rise of COVID-19 cases in the country, the Bangladeshi government declared a public holiday from March 26 to April 4 except for entities providing essential services.
Globally, the overall number of COVID-19 infections has increased to 1,099,389 and 58,901 deaths, while 226,603 people have recovered from the disease.
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