Curious about the latest global COVID-19 strategies and worldwide efforts to combat the pandemic? Read on to find out more.
As the world passes the three billion COVID-19 vaccine mark, we have come to accept that safe distancing, contact tracing, masks and vaccinations are our new normal — at least till all the variants are combated. It probably wasn’t where you saw yourself a year ago, but it might help to know you aren’t going through this alone. As such, we thought it might be fitting to do a run-through of the various countries and study their strategies against the virus.
- Face Masks That Can Detect COVID-19
- Lockdowns, Contact Tracing Apps and Their Difficulties
- Vaccinations: Is Herd Immunity a Thing?
What Percentage Of The World’s Population Is Vaccinated?
Our World in Data, a project by the University of Oxford, records that 23.2% of the world population has had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, with about three billion doses administered worldwide.
The Straits Times reports more positive numbers for China, India, the United States, and the Middle East. In fact, for every 100 people, the United Arab Emirates has given out 153 doses and Israel has doled out 124.
Yet, The New York Times cites concern for the widening gap between vaccination programs in different countries, with only 0.9% of the population of low-income countries receiving at least one dose — even with the Covax sharing scheme run by the World Health Organisation, the Gavi alliance and the Cepi coalition. As of today, five countries have yet to start their vaccination campaigns according to The Straits Times. They are Tanzania, Burundi, Eritrea, Haiti and North Korea.
1. Face Masks That Can Detect COVID-19
At the end of May, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong addressed the nation regarding the need for more extensive tests, vaccinations and faster contact tracing to keep the virus under control. The government is certain that the new normal includes being able to carry on with our lives amid the pandemic. Just as we do with the common flu.
That said, Scientists have taken it one step further to making this new normal a reality. This includes working to incorporate sensors into our daily wear. If all goes according to plan, fabrics like masks and jackets would be able to inform its wearers instantly if they have been exposed to “disease-causing pathogens” by lighting up. This sensor, created using the CRISPR gene-editing technology, is used in a similar way to how “our skin works, where you automatically sense your environment with exquisite sensitivity without needing to actively participate in the details of the process itself”, as reported by The Straits Times.
2. Lockdowns, Contact Tracing Apps & Their Difficulties
Thailand:
In a bid to combat new waves of infections, the Thai government has been promoting Mor Chana. The app works by recording where each individual is and at what time. When they come into contact with COVID-19 patients, health officials will alert the at-risk individuals via the app. While the app relies heavily on the number of active users, the number of downloads is less than 20% of Thailand’s Internet users because many fear losing their privacy.
Malaysia:
As COVID-19 numbers in Malaysia continue to soar with the country still in an extended lockdown that won’t be lifted till daily new cases dip below 4000, SCMP reports the concerns that public health experts are having about the nation’s contact-tracing efforts via MySerahtera and SELangkah. Amongst them are worried that health officials have no idea what to do with the data — amidst complaints of patients testing positive with no follow-up, as well as thousands of close contacts being missed daily. However, to help their citizens tide through this, about S$48.6 billion have been set aside.
Australia
Various parts of Australia have been subject to a “72-hour snap lockdown”, with Canberra being the latest to join Sydney, Perth and Darwin — all to contain the spread of the Delta variant. Meanwhile, the government is trying hard to encourage vaccinations amidst “supply-chain holdups from contracted drugmakers”.
Indonesia:
Indonesia battles the ‘more transmissible’ Delta variant. Thus, as announced by their government, stricter precautions ‘Pemberlakuan Pembatasan Kegiatan Masyarakat Darurat’ are expected to be imposed at the start of July to restrict public activity. This may include work-from-home and no-dining-in policies.
3. Vaccinations: Is Herd Immunity a Thing?
Johns Hopkins classifies herd immunity to have successfully happened when most of a population “is immune to an infectious disease”, which provides “indirect protection to those who are not immune to the disease”. For this to happen, “it is important to get as many people as possible vaccinated”.
A local example would be the Singapore Armed Forces, who would have “more than 90% fully vaccinated by mid-July”. As a result, according to The Straits Times, the SAF would be able to minimise disruptions and “ease restrictions to allow units to operate at maximum effectiveness”.
Malaysia:
Regionally, Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Labuan are predicted to be the first areas in Malaysia to hit herd immunity following reports that vaccine registrations have at least hit 80 per cent 100 per cent among their target population aged 18 and above. In addition, the number of vaccinations has “increased from 7,000 to 35,789 per day” — ”in Putrajaya alone, the numbers have increased from 1,000 to 1,800 per day, while in Labuan, it has more than quadrupled, from 700 to 3,000 a day”.
Israel:
Israel has seen much success in their COVID-19 efforts that employed an “aggressive vaccine purchase strategy”. In fact, at one point, Israel’s Ministry of Health had removed all COVID-19 restrictions including the need for face masks indoors. They also started the “Green Pass” system that “allows greater freedoms for vaccinated people”. However, they have since reintroduced compulsory mask-wearing indoors just 10 days after the amendment because of a surge in Delta variant related infections — as reported by The Straits Times.
Russia:
With regards to vaccines, Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine has been said to be “around 90 per cent effective against the highly contagious Delta variant. Meanwhile, Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine has been reported to produce neutralising antibodies against all variants, “including additional versions of the Beta variant” as well as all three lineage variants including the Kappa and the Delta variants!
Just Hold On – The Global Fight Against COVID-19 Is Underway
If anything, we hope that this article has been a good reminder that you aren’t alone and we are all in this together. If you felt overwhelmed by the sheer amount of information, keep calm with some of our self-care tips for the season. Do your part to keep everyone around you, as well as yourself, safe in the midst of this pandemic by practising good hygiene and safe-distancing!
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