ReliefWeb

Global Overview

TOTAL DEATHS: 1,270,930

TOTAL CASES: 51,251,715

as of 11 November – Source: WHO

Increased incidence was reported in Europe, America and the Eastern Mediterranean region. In Europe, Denmark ordered a national mink cull because of an outbreak of coronavirus infections in minks. South-East Asia reported a decline in new cases and deaths, while case incidence in Western Pacific regions remained fairly steady. In some parts of Africa, cases were accelerating. Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) urged governments to prepare for a second wave. The COVID-19 pandemic is estimated to push an additional 88 million to 115 million people into extreme poverty this year (World Bank), and may cost up to US$28 trillion in lost output by 2025 (IMF).

Sweden contributed SEK 100 million (US$11.57 million) to the Global Fund to counteract the effects of the pandemic, with a focus on Africa. The ACT-Accelerator Facilitation Council met to discuss concrete ways to increase support for and equitable access to new COVID-19 tests, treatments and vaccines. Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, signed a statement of intent to procure 200 million doses of Sanofi-GSK COVID-19 vaccine candidate for the COVAX Facility. The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovation (CEPI) committed up to US$328 million the development of a COVID-19 vaccine candidate by Chinese company Clover. Pfizer announced its experimental COVID-19 vaccine was more than 90% effective. The United Nations will hold a summit on the COVID-19 pandemic on 3 and 4 December to press for action on the global spread of COVID-19. In the U.S., President-Elect Joe Biden said coordination with WHO was “essential to coordinating a global response during a pandemic” and seeks to re-launch and strengthen U.S. Agency for International Development’s pathogen-tracking program (PREDICT).