Weekly news at a glance

(Worldwide) World Bank Grants $750M to South Africa

The World Bank approved the South African government’s request for $750 million to support efforts to offset the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The loan was agreed almost two years after the National Treasury first approached the Washington-based lender for help financing a 500 billion-rand ($33 billion) relief package after the onset of the pandemic.

The low-interest loan “will contribute towards addressing the financing gap stemming from additional spending in response to the Covid-19 crisis,” Treasury Director-General Dondo Mogajane said in a statement Friday. “It will assist in addressing the immediate challenge of financing critical health and social safety net programs.

Covid-19 has killed almost 94,000 people in South Africa, the most on the continent. Restrictions imposed by the government to stop the spread of the disease led to the biggest economic contraction in almost three decades in 2020 and led to a surge in job losses in a country with the world’s highest unemployment rate.

(Worldwide) Fourth dose raises resistance for over-60s

A fourth dose of COVID-19 vaccine given to people over 60 in Israel made them three times more resistant to serious illness than those who have had three vaccinations in the same age group, Israel’s Health Ministry said on Sunday.

The ministry also said the fourth dose, or second booster, made people over 60 twice as resistant to infection than those in the age group who received three shots of the vaccine.

A preliminary study published by Israel’s Sheba medical centre last Monday found that the fourth shot increases antibodies to even higher levels than the third but “probably” not to the point that it could completely fend off the highly transmissible Omicron variant.

(Worldwide) NZ PM cancels her wedding amid new COVID-19 rules

The prime minister was due to marry long-term partner Clarke Gayford later this month in a ceremony near Gisborne, on the North Island’s eastern coast. However, on Sunday, when announcing New Zealand’s first confirmed community spread of the infectious COVID-19 variant, she confirmed the nuptials were off.

As of midnight on Sunday, New Zealand will shift from “orange” to the stricter “red” settings on its traffic light-style system for COVID-19 management. Red settings require additional mask use in public settings, require hospitality venues to cap indoor patrons at 100 and seat them all, a cap that also applies to events and gatherings.

(AUS) Vaccines for Children

There will be an additional 2.4 million vaccine doses available next week for children aged 5 to 11. A significant number of bookings are available through state systems and Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt urged parents to try other options such as pharmacies if their local clinic had no appointments left.

A patchy start to the vaccine distribution for children has hampered the rollout and caused appointment delays and GP deferrals. Parents have been anxious about children returning to school not fully vaccinated. Mr Hunt repeated Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly’s assurance that the impact of COVID-19 on children is mild.

(AUS) Retired teachers asked to assist

Retired and inactive teachers are urged to return to school in term 1 to fill gaps in a COVID-19 staff shortage. Health professionals and people with administrative experience will also be recruited. A central pool of qualified school staff will be recruited to stand by when current staff must isolate due to COVID-19 exposure or infection.

However, only government schools, which educate two-thirds of Victorian schoolchildren, can access this pool. Local schools will employ staff on a fixed-term basis, filling in for teachers, school leaders and education support staff isolating due to COVID-19. The government will release return-to-school plans in the next few days.

(AUS) Older Victorians hit hardest by latest wave

New data has shown that the Omicron variant of COVID has had a bigger impact on older Victorians. The health data shows that those who have been hospitalised during the current outbreak have an average age approximately two decades older than those who were hospitalised during the Delta wave. It also indicates that Victorians who have received their booster dose are being admitted to hospital at extremely low rates.