COVID-19: THE GOVERNMENT PREPARES FINANCIAL RESERVE FOR VACCINES

 Angolan minister of Health Sílvia Lutucuta announced Tuesday in Luanda that the Executive is preparing a financial reserve for the acquisition of vaccines against SARS Cov-2.

Sílvia Lutucuta announced so during a session of debate on 2021 State Budget at Parliament, adding that in addition to the reserve, the Government is also working with the World Bank on funding the purchase of vaccines.

In addition to these initiatives, she said, Angola will benefit from 12 million vaccines, through the Covax initiative, made up of Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI), World Health Organization (WHO) and Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) .

"Studies on the vaccines are still in progress and we think that, in the first quarter of next year, we will start to have vaccines, but not in quantities to solve the problems and worldwide demand. Hence the need to maintain preventive measures against Covid - 19 ”, she said.

According to her, the patients with comorbidities will be the top priority.

During the meeting, the members of the National Assembly defended the need to increase the portion of Budget for the Health sector.

The revised Budget for 202 The allocated 816 billion kwanzas to the Health sector, and that of 2021 foresees an amount estimated at 842 billion.

Subsidy for medicines for people with chronic diseases: the MPs proposed to the Executive the adoption of measures to subsidize the medicines for the diabetic patients, with arterial hypertension and tuberculosis.

The proposal was presented by the 8th Commission of the National Assembly to the Minister of Health, Sílvia Lutucuta, during the discussion on State Budget for 2021 proposal.

The proposal is part of the range of concerns raised by the social partners, which defends the subsidy of medicines for families with an income below 150,000 kwanzas.

The MPs also defended the financial autonomy of hospitals and special attention to autistic children who suffer from global developmental disorders.

Sílvia Lutucuta guaranteed that the Executive is working on this process. "We have already held an initial public tender for medicines, but now it is necessary to do it comprehensively”, she stressed.

COVID-19: ANGOLA REPORTS 79 NEW INFECTIONS, 73 RECOVERIES

 Angolan health authorities announced Wednesday the record of 79 new infections of Covid-19, 73 patients recovered and two deaths, in the last 24 hours.

According to the Secretary of State for Public Health, Franco Mufinda, who was speaking at the country usual update session for Covid-19, 67 new cases were diagnosed in Luanda, five in Huambo, four in Lunda Sul and one each in Lunda Norte, Cabinda and Uíge.

The list of new patients, aged between one and 78 years, is composed of 46 males and 33 females. It reported that 73 patients were recovered, 28 from Malanje, 18 from Uíge, 15 from Luanda, nine from Cuanza Sul and three from Namibe, aged between two and 70 years.

In relation to the deaths, Franco Mufinda said that these were two Angolan citizens, living in Zaire, one male and one female, aged 34 and 67, respectively.

Angola has a record of 14,821 cases, with 340 deaths, 7,517 recovered and 6,964 active cases.

Of the active population, five are in critical condition with invasive mechanical ventilation, 13 severe, 175 moderate, 185 with mild symptoms and 6,586 asymptomatic.

Health authorities follow 378 patients admitted to treatment centers in the country.

Donald Trump pardons former aide Michael Flynn who pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI

 Donald Trump has pardoned his former national security adviser Michael Flynn, who pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI during an investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election.

Retired Army general Flynn was one of several former aides to the outgoing president to plead guilty or be convicted at trial in former Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Moscow’s interference to boost the former reality TV host’s candidacy.

He is expected to be the first of several key associates pardoned by Mr Trump before he leaves the White House on 20 January.

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In the days since his election loss Mr Trump has returned to criticising the probe, which he has long insisted was motivated by political bias.

“It is my Great Honor to announce that General Michael T. Flynn has been granted to Full Pardon,” Mr Trump tweeted.

“Congratulations to (at) GenFlynn and his wonderful family, I know you will now now have a truly fantastic Thanksgiving!”

Flynn is the second Trump associate convicted in the Russia investigation to be granted clemency by the president.

The president commuted the sentence of longtime confidant Roger Stone just days before he was to report to prison, amid a broader effort to undo the results of an investigation that has shadowed his administration and prompted criminal charges against a half dozen associates.

The pardon voids the criminal case against Flynn just as a federal judge was weighing whether to grant a Justice Department request to dismiss the prosecution - despite Flynn’s own guilty plea to lying to the FBI about his Russia contacts.

Coming as Mr Trump nears the end of his single term, the move is likely to energize supporters who have rallied around the retired Army lieutenant general as the victim of what they claim is an unfair prosecution.

His continued backing comes despite the fact Mr Mueller’s prosecutors once praised him as a model co-operator in their probe into ties between Russia and the 2016 Trump campaign.

The pardon is the final step in a case defined by twists and turns over the last year after the Justice Department abruptly moved to dismiss the case.

Officials insisted Flynn should have never been interviewed by the FBI in the first place, only to have US District Justice Emmet Sullivan refuse the request and appointments a former judge to argue against the federal government’s position.

Flynn’s lawyer Sidney Powell told the judge in September that she had discussed the case with Mr Trump but also said she did not want a pardon - presumably because she wanted him to be vindicated by the courts.

Ms Powell emerged separately in recent weeks as a public face of the Mr Trump's efforts to overturn the results of his election loss to president-elect Joe Biden, but the defeated leader's legal team ultimately distanced itself from her after she promoted a series of uncorroborated conspiracy claims.

The pardon spares Flynn the possibility of any prison sentence, which Mr Sullivan could potentially have imposed had he ultimately decided to reject the Justice Department’s dismissal request.

Wednesday could well be summarized as one of chaos and contradiction from the Trump camp.

While the president’s actions seem to be tacitly acknowledging the reality that he lost the general election and that his one term as president is drawing to a close, his words, still, do not.

It wasn’t much of a surprise when he tweeted that he would extend a presidential pardon to his former National Security Advisor General Michael Flynn.

Yet just hours before pardoning Flynn he used a mobile phone call to supporters at a hearing of the Pennsylvania State Senate to insist that “this is an election that we won easily. We won it by a lot ”.

Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about conversations with a Russian diplomat just before Trump took office. The charge came to light as part of the Robert Mueller investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

Trump was incensed at the very existence of the Mueller investigation, he’d already hinted he would pardon Flynn and he certainly hasn’t shied away from pardoning his political allies in the past.

But while the recipient was predictable the pardon itself is still an interesting signal as to how the president sees his position.

Presidential pardons, particularly to allies, are usually a last hoorah; some of the final things a leader does before they leave office.

When seen alongside his move earlier this week to finally allow the formal presidential transition to begin, you could almost conclude that Donald Trump has resigned himself to reality and may even go quietly.

Well, that seems unlikely.

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Source: skynews

Justin Trudeau: Canadian PM called by prankster impersonating Greta Thunberg

 Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was caught out by a prankster impersonating climate campaigner Greta Thunberg.

Mr Trudeau took the call - orchestrated by Russians Vladimir Kuznetsov and Alexey Stolyarov - in January, which the pair have just released on YouTube alongside an animated video.

Fake Greta begins in earnest fashion, saying she is concerned about the “growing international crisis and“ anticipation of the third world war ”.

The prime minister says he taken “many phone calls… about the need to de-escalate” - the prank appears to have been recorded soon after a Ukrainian plane was shot down by Iran, killing 55 Canadian citizens.

The prankster says world leaders should “drop your weapons, pick flowers, smile at nature”, with Mr Trudeau praising her “passionate words”.

When the caller takes issue with President Trump, saying he is “doing everything to kill us”, the PM replies diplomatically.

"I understand your words," he says.

“My responsibility is to work with world leaders that other people choose… But I can certainly understand that people can feel very, very strongly about him.”

Prince Harry and Meghan - who lived in Canada for a while - also come up.

The prankster says she worries that Harry’s wife “manipulates him”.

Mr Trudeau replies: “I think in every relationship there are complicated concessions and compromises that are the art of living together.

“I have met Meghan a few times and she has always been lovely…”

'Greta' also tells the 48-year-old leader: “We can create a world where there is a place for everyone - for whites and blacks, Christians and Muslims, for Trump and Putin, for you and me, for Boris Johnson, for Corbyn, for Terrance and Phillip. ”

It is this latter reference to characters from animated comedy South Park that eventually makes him realize what’s going on.

When asked to set up a meeting with Terrance and Phillip, he promises to “ask my team to try and figure out how we can connect you” - before a few seconds later the penny drops.

"Wait, Terrance and Phillip, were they not in South Park?" he says.

"I don’t personally know them but I believe they are South Park parodies of Canadians."

Mr Trudeau then politely, but quickly, wraps up the call.

The prime minister’s office told Canada’s CTV network in a statement: “This is not the first prank call of a world leader. The prime minister determined the call was fake and promptly ended it. ”

In March, the Russian pair released audio apparently featuring Prince Harry himself.

French President Emmanuel Macron was also said to be the victim in another clip last year.

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Source: skynews

Europe was largest contributor to new Covid-19 cases and deaths in the past week, WHO says

 Europe remained the biggest global contributor to new Covid-19 cases and deaths in the past week, the World Health Organization (WHO) said, despite signs that stricter measures against the spread of the virus are starting to have an impact.

The European region accounted for 44% of global new cases and 49% of global new deaths in the past week, according to the latest weekly WHO report, released Tuesday.

While the number of new cases in the region is declining on a weekly basis, the number of deaths is still rising, with 32,684 new fatalities reported in the previous seven days.

This update comes as countries across the continent grapple with how to allow people to celebrate upcoming holidays, including Christmas, and mitigate the economic pain to businesses while countering the pandemic.

France and the United Kingdom both set out plans Tuesday for the coming weeks based on falling infection rates following lockdown measures.

Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, on Wednesday called on EU leaders not to relax their coronavirus restrictions too quickly.

“I know that shop owners, bartenders and waiters in restaurants want an end to restrictions, but we must learn from the summer and not repeat the same mistakes,” she told the European Parliament in Brussels. “Relaxing too fast and too much is a risk for a third wave after Christmas.”

Von der Leyen said she had warned weeks ago that this Christmas would be different, and quieter, than usual, and urged solidarity between European nations.

But, she added, “there is also good news, the European Commission by now has secured contracts on vaccines with six pharmaceutical companies, the first European citizens might already be vaccinated before the end of December, and there's finally light at the end of the tunnel. ”

The European Commission announced Tuesday that it had secured a contract with pharmaceutical company Moderna for up to 160 million doses of its Covid-19 vaccine.

According to the WHO report, the global acceleration in case incidence has slowed down over the past week, with around 4 million new cases recorded. However, death rates continued to increase, with more than 67,000 new deaths reported across the world.

The number of new cases reported in the European region in the past week declined by 6% to 1.77 million, after a decline of 10% in the previous week, the report said, “in a sign that the reintroduction of stricter public health and social measures in a number of countries over the last few weeks is beginning to slow down transmission. ”

But despite this downward trend, “the European Region remains the largest contributor to new cases and new deaths in the past 7 days,” the report said. The European region, as defined by WHO, encompasses 53 countries.

Italy reported the highest number of new cases in the region and the third-highest globally, with 235,979, but, according to WHO, cases may have peaked given the 3% decline reported there. The number of new deaths increased in the country by 26% last week, to 4,578.

The second largest global contributor to new cases and deaths was the Americas region, with 1.6 million new cases - an increase of 11% on the previous week - and 22,005 new deaths, up 15% on the previous week, according to WHO.

The majority of those were in the United States, which reported over 1.1 new million cases, a 14% increase from the previous week, while deaths increased in the US over that period by 23%, with 9,918. The Americas region continues to account for the greatest proportion of cumulative cases and deaths, according to WHO figures.

Despite some positive signs, parts of Europe continue to grapple with a relentless second wave of Covid-19 infections.

Germany recorded 410 deaths related to coronavirus in the past 24 hours - the highest single-day jump in fatalities since the outbreak began, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), the country’s disease and control agency, said Wednesday

t was the first time that more than 400 Covid-19 deaths were recorded by Germany in a single day. A total of 18,633 new infections were registered in the past 24 hours, according to RKI.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel is set to meet state governors on Wednesday to decide on new measures to try to bring the surge under control. Among the measures to be debated is an extension of the current, lighter restrictions until the end of December, additional mask mandates for schools and further restrictions on the number of contacts people are allowed to have.

Meanwhile, Poland reported 674 coronavirus deaths on Wednesday, a new daily record for the nation. The total number of deaths connected to Covid-19 has reached 14,888, its health ministry tweeted. There were also 15,362 new cases reported in the last day, bringing the total number of cases to 942,442.

The latest WHO figures brought some relief for the United Kingdom, which has suffered the highest number of Covid-related deaths overall in Europe, with 55,935 in total, according to the latest figures from Johns Hopkins University.

The UK registered a 13% decrease of new cases from last week, with 149,027 reported, while the number of new deaths remained similar, according to the WHO. This decrease in new cases was the first weekly decline since late August, the report said.

A month-long partial lockdown in England is due to end on December 2, to be replaced by three-tiered restrictions based on local infection rates. Devolved governments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have imposed their own measures.

The UK government said Tuesday it would allow for up to three households to form a “Christmas bubble” and mix indoors, outdoors and in places of worship from December 23 to 28 across the UK. There will be no restrictions on travel across the country for that time period even if some areas are under tighter measures than others, the government said.

“This cannot be a‘ normal ’Christmas. But as we approach the festive period, we have been working closely together to find a way for family and friends to see each other, even if it is for a short time, and recognizing that it must be both limited and cautious, ”a government news release said.

Macron: We avoided the worst

Across the Channel in France, President Emmanuel Macron said the country would start to lift Covid-19 lockdown restrictions this weekend because of a slowdown in the spread of virus.

In an address to the nation, Macron said the latest figures showed that more than 50,000 people had died from Covid-19 in France but the number of patients in ICUs was on the decline. “It appears that the peak of the second wave of the epidemic has passed; we dreaded even worse numbers and avoided them, ”he said.

As of Saturday, shops, boutiques and hairdressers will be allowed to open until 9 p.m., but people will still need to carry a certificate with an approved reason to leave the house. Internal travel restrictions will also be eased and places of worship can reopen with a maximum of 30 people gathered at the same time.

The lockdown could be lifted further on December 15, if the daily number of cases drops under 5,000 and there are only 2,000 to 3,000 patients in hospital ICUs. "We will therefore once again be able to travel without authorization, including between regions, and spend Christmas with our family," Macron said.

In that instance, French cinemas, theaters and museums would also be allowed to open, but bars, clubs and restaurant will remain closed. There will be a curfew from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m., except at Christmas and the New Year.

Macron said a decision on opening ski and winter sport resorts had not yet been made yet but warned that it looked “impossible to envisage an opening for the holidays.” From January 20, a third stage of easing that would allow restaurants to open could go ahead if the number of daily cases stays below 5,000.

The President said vaccination for those at highest risk was expected to roll out at the end of December or early January.

Belgian businesses urge reopening

The Belgium’s neighbors begin opening up their stores, the Belgian federation of commerce and services, Comeos, warned the country “will not become an island of closed shops but rather an island of bankrupt shops, while Belgian money is spent abroad.”

“If everything remains closed with us, everyone will go across the border also for their Christmas shopping,” Dominique Michel, CEO of Comeos, said in a statement.

According to Comeos, which represents 18 business sectors in Belgium and more than 400,000 employees, half of all Belgians live within 50 kilometers (31 miles) of an international border.

Earlier this week, the Belgian National Crisis Center urged Belgians not to travel abroad over Christmas and New Year, warning trips to neighboring countries would “cancel out our efforts” in reducing the spread of the coronavirus.

Belgium’s Consultative Committee - made up of leaders from the three regional governments and federal government - is due to meet Friday to assess the measures currently in place and discuss ways the country would be able to celebrate Christmas.

Belgium’s strict lockdown measures were put in place on November 2 and are due to last until December 13.

Announcing the lockdown, Prime Minister Alexander de Croo said a decision would be made by December 1 regarding a possible reopening of shops and services.

Ireland to ease restrictions

The Irish government is set to ease restrictions for nearly two weeks around the Christmas period and is considering allowing up to three households to gather for the holidays, deputy premier Leo Varadkar told state broadcaster RTE Wednesday.

“We know people are going to do it anyway, so it’s better we provide for it in a safe way,” Varadkar told RTE.

Strict restrictions have been in place in Ireland since October, with social gatherings at homes or in gardens banned and restaurants, cafes and bars only open for takeaway.

Shops, gyms and hairdressing could be among the first services to reopen, RTE reports, with a timeline for bars and restaurants still under consideration.

Meanwhile, Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis said Tuesday he aimed to offer all citizens voluntary free antigen testing for Covid-19 by Christmas, the Czech Health Ministry told CNN.

“I would very much like us to meet this challenge to allow all citizens, at least a week or 10 days before Christmas, to be able to be tested voluntarily and for free with antigen tests,” Babis said.

Africa is the biggest investment opportunity the US is missing out on

 Investing in Africa is lower risk than most perceive it to be and promises high returns in more ways than one.

In 2018 Trump called Africa a continent of ‘s *** hole countries’. I hope Biden will see Africa as the biggest investment opportunity America has been missing.

China has been quietly cashing in on Africa over the last 20 years seeing it as the greatest opportunity for economic advancement. It’s time America did too because capital, not aid, is what is really needed to build a self-sufficient, stable, thriving continent.

Strategic investment could also help to broaden Biden’s base as ‘aid’ through investment could unite both Republicans (who tend to view aid negatively, but business opportunities positively) and Democrats (who tend to see things the opposite way).

After 5 years of working as an aid worker in the early 2000s, I became disillusioned by the lack of any significant needle-moving impact NGO’s were able to make.

My conclusion: Africa needs investment. Enterprise, not charity. Ambition, not pity. Innovation, not bandaid solutions. By investing in Africa’s most promising businesses and fueling the startup culture that is energized across the continent, the US can create a significant Return on Investment, achieve more change with less funding, and competes with China at its own game.

Africa matters, which is why Beijing has keenly turned its attention towards the continent, particularly over the last decade. But unlike the US and its Western allies (who still see Africa as an aid recipient) Chinese attention has been built on funding infrastructure projects and taking shares in Africa’s corporates - often through offshore companies and intermediaries which conceal the true extent of China’s investments.

This has fuelled China’s sales pitch to the continent: Westerners think of you as destitute, war-torn, famine-ridden peoples, and don’t want to change that but rather just marginally improve it. We see you as business partners. The equals.

To compete and capture the high-growth startup opportunities that China is currently overlooking, America should follow others ’example and create a Sovereign Wealth Fund; a government-owned portfolio of investments that can deliver a Return on Investment as well as project the country’s power and influence.

America’s own entrepreneurial success should be emulated by reinvesting in entrepreneurship across the world. Just imagine the influence the US could have by empowering and funding entrepreneurship - arguably the very factor that has indeed made America great.

Ten US States already have Sovereign Wealth Funds performing this function, which makes it more perplexing as to why this has never been attempted at the federal level.

Scaling up the existing successes could be transformational: the Alaska Permanent Fund bankrolls the state’s Universal Basic Income scheme, and the Texas Permanent School Fund supports public schooling. Both receive revenues from those states ’energy sectors, but the same could be achieved through a US government-backed Venture Capital fund investing in African startups.

This would have more cross-party support than simply asking for more funding for USAID - a request that a Republican Senate would likely block in any case.

There is an over-supply of young, educated, ambitious entrepreneurs in Africa. If their businesses were fortunate enough to be based in San Francisco or they were fortunate enough to have gone to Harvard, they would be fighting off offers for investment.

But for unconnected entrepreneurs based in Africa few such avenues currently exist which creates an enormous opportunity for investors, particularly given that 25 percent of the world’s workforce will be found in Africa by 2050.

The expected growth of African markets over the course of the next 20 years is likely to be exponential. The continent is ripe for technological development and for digital advancements.

Investing in Africa is also lower risk than many perceive it to be. There are many midsize, growing economies in the continent, run by competent governments who have reigned in corruption and increased transparency. Currency volatility is also potentially counter-acted by the possibility of out-paced returns.

The US’s Marshall Fund bankrolled development and growth in Europe after decades of conflict and war. It created the conditions for a continent-wide free-trade bloc - the EU - which was indebted, financially and politically, to its financier. This obligation was formalized in NATO, which has been the vanguard of Western power ever since.

Similarly, China is currently funding Africa’s growth beyond its recent history of hardship. Beijing has invested in everything from banks to bridges, roads and mines and is not slowing down.

Investment in the region has led to the creation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) - the world’s largest free trade area, which will come into effect over the next few years.

Now, it is therefore the time to invest in Africa’s companies when the continent is on the cusp of seeing extraordinary economic growth. Africa’s ability to handle Covid-19 similarly positions it incredibly well to capitalize on economic growth.

It’s been 35 years since the Live Aid concert in response to the Ethiopian famine; an event that defined Africa for a generation of Westerners. This year, Ethiopia’s GDP was forecast to grow by 7 percent.

The only thing Ethiopians - and many of their fellow Africans - are hungry for now is an equal footing in the global startup scene and the investment that will allow them to show the world what they can do.