Africa-Press – Gambia. AFRICA AND MIDDLE EAST * COVID-19 and lockdowns have slowed efforts to monitor and vaccinate children against other diseases such as polio, a WHO Africa coordinator told Reuters. ECONOMIC IMPACT * The Philippines central bank will leave policy on hold at Thursday’s meeting to support a nascent recovery, despite a recent U.S. Federal Reserve rate hike and surging commodity prices since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a Reuters poll found.China’s financial hub Shanghai on Tuesday reported a fifth consecutive daily record for locally transmitted COVID-19 asymptomatic cases as the highly infectious Omicron variant complicates efforts to stop the virus from spreading. DEATHS AND INFECTIONS
* Eikon users, see COVID-19: MacroVitals https://apac1.apps.cp.thomsonreuters.com/cms/?navid=1592404098 for a case tracker and summary of the news. ASIA-PACIFIC
* Hong Kong officials are finally easing harsh restrictions on travel and schools that saw emigration spike. It’s a grudging acceptance that contradictory policies have failed, and it comes too late to yield much economic dividend. * New Zealand’s Ministry of Defence said it has suspended plans to build an Antarctic and Southern Ocean patrol vessel because planned spending is being reassessed due to the impact on the government’s budget of costs related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
* While telemedicine is technically illegal in South Korea and has only been allowed under emergency COVID measures since 2020, the increase in its users and support from President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol who sees it as an “inevitable reality” suggest it may remain part of the healthcare system. AMERICAS
* The U.S. drug regulator said a panel of independent advisers will meet on April 6 to discuss considerations for use of COVID-19 vaccine booster doses. EUROPE
* Police have begun to interview witnesses as part of their investigation into alleged breaches of lockdown rules at gatherings in British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s office and residence, the Metropolitan Police said on Monday. AFRICA AND MIDDLE EAST
* COVID-19 and lockdowns have slowed efforts to monitor and vaccinate children against other diseases such as polio, a WHO Africa coordinator told Reuters. MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS
* Most children and adolescents do not have COVID-19 antibodies in their blood after recovering from a SARS-CoV-2 infection, new data has confirmed. ECONOMIC IMPACT
* The Philippines central bank will leave policy on hold at Thursday’s meeting to support a nascent recovery, despite a recent U.S. Federal Reserve rate hike and surging commodity prices since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a Reuters poll found.
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