From home workouts and remote medical consultations to online classes and even virtual dating, technology today is ensuring that our lives go on, albeit from behind the screen

[African Arguments] Domestic abuse has spiked under COVID-19. Cash transfers are no panacea, but they've been shown to reduce violence and can be adapted.

The chief of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, warned on Wednesday that "the risk of returning to lockdown remains very real if countries do not manage the transition extremely carefully and in a phased approach" during a virtual briefing. Previously, the WHO established a list of conditions to lift restrictive measures in place to stop the spread of coronaviruses, such as surveillance control and healthcare preparedness.

The decision to shelve detailed advice from the nation’s top disease control experts for reopening communities during the coronavirus pandemic came from the highest levels of the White House.

Singapore Airlines’ shares surged the most in more than three decades on bets that ongoing fundraising will help the carrier survive as lockdown restrictions ease worldwide from Italy to the US.Its share price, adjusted for the planned rights issue, soared as much as 21 per cent, the most since October 1987. It pared its advance to 11 per cent this afternoon. The company unveiled in March plans to raise about S$8.8 billion (US$6.2 billion) by rights issue and convertible bonds to contend with…

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ISLAMABAD: As many as 1.6 billion of the world’s 2bn informal economy workers are affected by Covid-19 lockdown and containment measures, a new briefing paper issued by the International Labour Organi­sation (ILO) said.

Most are working in the hardest-hit sectors or in small units more vulnerable to shocks including workers in accommodation and food services, manufacturing, wholesale and retail, and the more than 500 million farmers producing for the urban market, the report says. Women are particularly affected in high-risk sectors, it adds.

The Covid-19 lockdown and containment measures threaten to increase relative poverty levels among the world’s informal economy workers by as much as 56 percentage points in low-income countries.

In high-income countries, relative poverty levels among informal workers is estimated to increase by 52 percentage points, while in upper middle-income countries the increase is estimated to be 21 percentage points.

In addition, with these workers needing to work to feed their families, Covid-19 containment measures in many countries cannot be implemented successfully. This is endangering governments’ efforts to protect the population and fight the pandemic. It may become a source of social tension in countries with large informal economies, the report says.

More than 75 per cent of total informal employment takes place in businesses of fewer than ten workers, including 45pc of independent workers without employees.

With most informal workers having no other means of support, they face an almost unsolvable dilemma: to die from hunger or from the virus, the briefing says. This has been exacerbated by disruptions in food supplies, which has particularly affected those in the informal economy.

For the world’s 67 million domestic workers, 75pc of whom are informal workers, unemployment has become as threatening as the virus itself. Many have not been able to work, whether at the request of their employers or in compliance with lockdowns. Those who do continue to go to work face a high risk of contagion, caring for families in private households. For the 11 million migrant domestic workers the situation is even worse.

The countries with the largest informal economies, where full lockdowns have been adopted, are suffering the most from the consequences of the pandemic. Informal economy workers significantly impacted by lockdown vary from 89pc in Latin America and the Arab states to 83pc in Africa, 73pc in Asia and the Pacific, and 64pc in Europe and Central Asia.

Countries need to follow a multi-track strategy that combines several lines of actions relating to both the health and economic impacts of the pandemic, the ILO said.

Among its recommendations, the report highlights the need for policies that reduce the exposure of informal workers to the virus; ensure that those infected have access to health care; provide income and food support to individuals and their families; and prevent damage to the economic fabric of countries.

Published in Dawn, May 9th, 2020

The last "supermoon" of 2020 rose in the night sky on Thursday over a world beginning to re-emerge after weeks of coronavirus-related lockdowns.

Title: Baby Boom After Pandemic Lockdowns? Maybe Not
Category: Health News
Created: 5/8/2020 12:00:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 5/8/2020 12:00:00 AM

Researchers conducted nearly 1,500 online interviews and found that nearly 82% of those surveyed said they didn't plan to conceive during the coronavirus pandemic.

The last "supermoon" of 2020 rose in the night sky on Thursday over a world beginning to re-emerge after weeks of coronavirus-related lockdowns.

People flocked to beaches in Florida after the state lifted some of its coronavirus lockdown restrictions.

Netflix has seen a surge in new sign-ups as audiences stayed in their homes to help fight coronavirus and binged on series such as Tiger King.

Global confirmed coronavirus cases have surpassed three million.

People in countries across Europe are gradually regaining some old freedoms as governments start to lift their coronavirus lockdowns after many weeks.

The slowing economy due to COVID-19 has allowed solar, wind and hydro power to overtake coal-fired power.

Imperial College London experts also shoot down hopes that large parts of the population have already recovered from coronavirus.

Nearly half of US states will have their ‘stay-at-home’ orders expire this week, paving the way for much of the US to relax its lockdowns.

Oil prices pared losses to turn higher on Monday, despite worries that a global oil glut may persist even as coronavirus pandemic lockdowns start to ease and amid a fresh spat between the United States and China over the origin of the virus.

Oil prices climbed in early trade on Tuesday, adding to gains in the previous session, on expectations that fuel demand will begin to pick up as some U.S. states and nations in Europe and Asia start to ease coronavirus lockdown measures.

Researchers at Cambridge University and the U.S. Federal Reserve Board found that imposing no lockdown measures in the face of Covid-19 was "extremely risky" for developed economies.

"That's going to tug against what the governors have to do," the former FDA chief told CNBC. "We still face a pretty big epidemic in this country."

China's exports could weaken in May, possibly also in June, as some of its largest export markets in the West have been under lockdown due to the pandemic, says Ray Farris, Credit Suisse's chief investment officer for South Asia.

Italy, Belgium and Portugal are reopening some business activities on Monday as they take their first tentative steps to lifting their coronavirus lockdowns.

Women and children are experiencing unprecedented levels of abuse and violence at home as stress and anxiety continue to mount due to the pandemic.

Number of novel coronavirus cases in India soared to 46,433 with 32,138 active cases, despite a 40-days and above lockdown period completed in an effort to contain the spread of the COVID-19.

From business closures to movement restrictions, some countries’ policies show first signs of easing

Flashpoint between Brazil’s populist leader and political establishment over response to virus

Near-unconditional cash transfers are the most efficient form of relief

Homeworking prompts decline in demand for consumer group’s skin and haircare products

Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson, Hannah Kuchler and Gideon Rachman assess the next stage of the coronavirus crisis

IEA expects global consumption will decline 8% this year in largest drop since second world war

The actress and humanitarian wrote an op-ed in Time magazine describing the domestic violence crisis affecting children stuck at home with abusers amid coronavirus lockdowns.

Terry O'Gorman, a criminal defence lawyer for 43 years, has explained how police can issue COVID-19 fines of at least $1,000 based on them accessing your mobile phone and bank data.

Johan Giesecke, who was Sweden's top virus expert for 10 years, believes lockdowns are merely delaying an inevitable wave of coronavirus cases and deaths - not preventing it.

The coronavirus has forced the world in a lockdown, resulting in a 6% drop in carbon dioxide levels, but experts warn it return to normal once the global economy recovers from the pandemic.

Millions of Americans are under a lockdown during the coronavirus and are turning to Netflix and other streaming services to pass the time -.the average person is streaming eight hours of content per day.

U.S. streaming giant Netflix saw its share value climb to an all-time-high on Wednesday as more people around the world subscribe to the service as coronavirus lockdowns continue to keep people in.