COVID-19: What you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic on 28 September – World Economic Forum

1. India could become the world's worst affected country

Global deaths from the pandemic have now reached more than 997,000 while global cases have risen to more than 33 million according to data from the Johns Hopkins University.

This tally of deaths is likely to rise to above 1 million shortly and the World Health Organization has warned that the pandemic may eventually cause 2 million deaths before an effective vaccine is rolled out.

Indias coronavirus cases have now topped 6 million after it reported 82,170 new infections in the last 24 hours. Infections are rising faster than anywhere else in the world.

Restrictions began to be lifted in June, despite the fact that cases have continued to rise.

Responding to the COVID-19 pandemic requires global cooperation among governments, international organizations and the business community, which is at the centre of the World Economic Forums mission as the International Organization for Public-Private Cooperation.

Since its launch on 11 March, the Forums COVID Action Platform has brought together 1,667 stakeholders from 1,106 businesses and organizations to mitigate the risk and impact of the unprecedented global health emergency that is COVID-19.

The platform is created with the support of the World Health Organization and is open to all businesses and industry groups, as well as other stakeholders, aiming to integrate and inform joint action.

As an organization, the Forum has a track record of supporting efforts to contain epidemics. In 2017, at our Annual Meeting, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) was launched bringing together experts from government, business, health, academia and civil society to accelerate the development of vaccines. CEPI is currently supporting the race to develop a vaccine against this strand of the coronavirus.

2. China acts to prevent future outbreaks

Beijing has said it will protect healthcare workers who warn of emerging health emergencies. The move comes after criticism of the treatment of medical staff in Wuhan when they first warned about a new and unknown disease at the end of 2019.

It now says it will offer a reward to health workers who alert the authorities to new threats, and will also ensure their safety and legal rights are protected.

China had reported no local infections of the coronavirus for more than a month

However, it has detected cases of the virus on imported seafood products, raising new fears that the virus could travel via refrigerated supply chains.

The rise and fall of confirmed cases.

Image: Our World in Data

3. Tighter restrictions in Europe

France, Spain and the UK are all seeing rising case numbers as winter approaches, and are imposing tighter restrictions as a result.

More than 1 million people in and around Madrid will not be able to leave their area except for school or work. And the Spanish government wants local officials to go further and impose a citywide lockdown, despite a backlash of protests against the new measures.

Nearly two-thirds of Wales population is now under lockdown, with households not allowed to mix. Elsewhere in the UK, much of the focus has been on the impact of students starting university, with thousands of students now confined to their halls of residence.

Also in Europe, the Czech Republic is becoming a new hotspot, reporting 1,305 new cases on Sunday, while Russia has reported 8,135 cases in the past 24 hours.

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COVID-19: What you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic on 28 September - World Economic Forum