Daily COVID Tracker: NCDC logs 537 new infections, six deaths

Nigeria on Sunday recorded 537 cases of COVID-19. Here are five updates about the pandemic this Monday.

UK GOVERNMENT APPEALS TO PREGNANT WOMEN TO GET VACCINATED

The UK government has appealed to all pregnant women to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

It said almost all pregnant women admitted to hospital with COVID-19 symptoms were unvaccinated .

The government said it is clear that COVID-19 vaccines are safe for pregnant women and have no impact on fertility.

A campaign has been kicked off encouraging expectant mothers to get boosted. It highlights the risks of COVID-19 to mothers and babies, with testimonies of pregnant women who have had the vaccine broadcast on radio and social media.

GERMANY TO STUDY RAPID ANTIGEN-TEST RELIABILITY FOR OMICRON 

Germany will study how reliable rapid antigen tests are in detecting the Omicron variant of COVID-19.

Karl Lauterbach, the country’s health minister, said this on Sunday on a public broadcasting channel.

“We do not know exactly how well these tests work for Omicron,” Lauterbach said, adding that the results of the assessment will become available within the next few weeks.

He said it was clear, however, that “the alternative not to test at all would be far too dangerous”.

40% OF ISRAEL COULD BE INFECTED IN CURRENT WAVE, SAYS PRIME MINISTER 

Naftali Bennett, Israel’s Prime Minister, said the country could see up to nearly 40% of its population infected by COVID-19 during the current wave.

In a series of tweets on Sunday, Bennett described the Omicron variant as a “storm that is sweeping the world”.

“Information presented at the cabinet meeting indicates that here, in Israel, between two to four million citizens in total will be infected during this current wave,” he wrote.

“When standing in line it is difficult to see the successes and evaluation steps we have made, extremely important steps that will save lives. I understand the frustration, but ask you to be aware of that as well.”

THOUSANDS PROTEST IN FRANCE AGAINST PROPOSED NEW COVID PASS

More than 105,000 people have taken part in protests across the country against the introduction of a new coronavirus pass.

A new law will ban unvaccinated people from public life.

The bill, which passed its first reading in the lower house of France’s parliament on Thursday, will remove the option of showing a negative COVID-19 test to gain access to a host of public venues.

Instead, people will have to be fully vaccinated to visit a range of spaces, including bars and restaurants.

The government says it expects the new rules to come into force on January 15.

Demonstrators in the capital, Paris, held placards emblazoned with phrases like “no to vaccine passes”, accusing the government of trampling on their freedoms and treating citizens unequally.

NIGERIA RECORDS 537 CASES

Nigeria’s daily-count of COVID-19 cases witnessed decline on Sunday as the country logged 537 new cases.

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) says the new cases were recorded in seven states and the federal capital territory (FCT).

A breakdown of the cases is as follows:

Rivers-313

Lagos-178

FCT-19

Kaduna-11

Gombe-6

Ogun-6

Ekiti-3

Abia-1

The agency said 569 people were discharged after they recovered from the infection.

Six persons were said to have died of COVID complications, raising the total fatalities to 3,077.

With the new confirmed cases, Nigeria has now recorded a total of 248,312 infections and 218,996 recoveries.