減らぬ感染者、フィリピン経済の行方は

厳しい規制が進められる中、フィリピンでは4日、新たに1万1028人以上のコロナ感染者が確認されました。一方、回復者も新たに41,205人報告され、これはパンデミック始まって以来最高の数値です。

世界保健機関(WHO)は、少なくとも2週間陽性率が5%の状態が続いてから、経済活動を再開することを推奨しています。フィリピンの現在の陽性率は22.7%のため、経済活動再開への道のりは長そうです。

また世界銀行は、フィリピンの感染者数が急増していることに加え、ワクチン接種が遅れていることから、フィリピンの経済回復予想を下方修正したことを発表しました。

具体的には、世界銀行はフィリピンの成長率予測を5.9%から5.5%に引き下げました。これはフィリピン政府の目標である6.5%〜7.5%を下回っています。

フィリピンはいち早くワクチン接種の体制を整え、経済活動再開を目指す必要があるでしょう。

以下、ABS-CBN NEWSより

PH posts highest number of new COVID-19 recoveries, but also over 11K new cases

MANILA – The Philippines confirmed 11,028 new cases of COVID-19 on Sunday bringing the country’s total to 795,051.

The Department of Health meanwhile also reported 41,205 new recoveries, the highest number since the pandemic began, pushing the total number of Filipinos who recovered from the disease to 646,100.

This means that the country has a total of 135,526 active cases as of 4 p.m. Sunday.

Two more deaths were reported from the illness, bringing COVID-19’s death toll in the Philippines to 13,425.

ABS-CBN Data Analytics noted that the positivity rate is now at 22.7 percent. The World Health Organization recommends a positivity rate of 5 percent or lower for at least 14 days, before reopening the economy.

The pandemic has already caused the Philippines to plunge into its worst economic contraction since World War 2.

Economic managers had been looking forward to a sharp rebound in growth in the second quarter as the economy opened up.

The World Bank however said the country’s slow mass vaccination amid surging COVID-19 cases has prompted it to lower its recovery expectations for the Philippines.

On Friday, the World Bank slashed its 2021 Philippine growth forecast to 5.5 percent from 5.9 percent–below the government’s target of 6.5 percent to 7.5 percent growth for the year..

The country’s first COVID-19 case was a 38-year-old Chinese woman from Wuhan, China.

The first COVID-19 death outside of China, was also recorded in the Philippines last year.

Worldwide, the novel coronavirus has infected more than 130.78 million people and caused over 2.84 million deaths since it was first reported in Wuhan, China in late 2019 according to the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center.

The United States remains the most badly affected country with over 30 million infections and over 554,000 deaths.

Brazil ranks second with 12.9 million infections and over 330,000 COVID-19 fatalities. In terms of number of infections, India is third with 12.48 million confirmed cases. In terms of deaths meanwhile, Mexico’s ranks third with over 201,000 deaths.