Covid news live: Africa sees cases ‘drop significantly’; experts say Australia’s Omicron wave ‘likely’ peaked

As we continue across Asia, Malaysia is reporting another 3,497 new coronavirus cases and 27 deaths, according to recent government data.

A total of 3,242 cases were locally transmitted while 522 were imported.

While we are in the Asian region, South Korea is reporting an additional 6,769 confirmed coronavirus cases, according to a recent update from the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Another 21 deaths have also been reported, taking the cumulative death toll in the country to 6,501.

A total of 431 people are in in critical condition with 626 new hospital admissions per day.

The intensive care bed utilisation rate – a closely watched figure – is at 21.9%.

Just a quick snap from Thailand as the Southeast Asian nation reports another 8,640 new daily coronavirus cases today and 13 deaths, according to recent report from the ministry of health.

Adele has been forced to delay her three-month Las Vegas residency after Covid hit the production.

“I’m so sorry, but my show ain’t ready,” the singer announced in an Instagram post. “We’ve been absolutely destroyed by delivery delays and Covid. Half my crew … are down with Covid – they still are – and it’s been impossible to finish the show.”

The residency, titled Weekends with Adele, was due to begin on 21 January at the Colosseum in the Caesars Palace casino, celebrating her highly lauded album 30, which topped music charts in the UK, Australia and the US. Its first single, Easy On Me, broke records upon its release, becoming Spotify’s most-streamed song in a single day.

“I’m gutted and I’m sorry it’s so last minute,” Adele said. “We’ve been awake for over 30 hours now and we’ve run out of time. I’m so upset and … I’m so sorry to everyone that travelled to get [here].

“We’re going to reschedule all of the dates, we’re on it right now … I’m gonna finish my show and I’m gonna get it to where it’s supposed to be.”

Read the full story here.

Cases of Covid have sharply declined in Africa and deaths are declining for the first time since the emergence of the Omicron variant, the World Health Organization has said.

The UN health agency’s regional office for Africa said newly reported cases fell 20% in the week to Sunday while notified deaths dropped 8%.

Matshidiso Moeti, the WHO’s regional director for Africa, described the 56-day flareup as Africa’s “shortest upsurge yet” but added: “The continent has yet to turn the tables on this pandemic. So long as the virus continues to circulate, further pandemic waves are inevitable.”

Moeti said Africa should “not only broaden vaccinations, but also gain increased and equitable access to critical Covid-19 therapeutics to save lives and effectively combat this pandemic”.

Only 10% of people in Africa are fully vaccinated, according to the WHO.

The continent, with a population of 1.2 billion, has been relatively unscathed by the pandemic, reporting 234,913 deaths from 10.5 million cases, according to AFP tallies.

However, most data experts agree that the lower numbers are most likely due to access to testing and the true number is much higher.

Hello it’s Samantha Lock back with you on the blog, reporting all the latest Covid developments from across the world.

I’ll be reporting to you from Sydney and my colleagues from London will take over a little later in the day.

Let’s dive in with the cautiously optimistic news that Australia’s Omicron wave has likely peaked in NSW and Victoria, according to experts.

Epidemiologist and biostatistician, Prof Adrian Esterman, said the Omicron wave had “absolutely certainly” peaked in NSW and Victoria after noting the reproduction number, which measures how many other people someone with Covid will infect, on average – had dropped below 1 in both states.

In more hopeful news, the World Health Organization notes that cases of Covid have sharply declined in Africa and deaths are declining for the first time since the emergence of the Omicron variant.

Describing the 56-day flareup as Africa’s “shortest upsurge yet,” the WHO’s African regional office said newly reported cases fell by 20% in the week to Sunday, while notified deaths dropped by 8%.

Here’s a round-up of all the latest international developments you may have missed:

Europe:

• The Irish government has been given the green light to lift the majority of the state’s Covid restrictions.
• In France, Covid-19 restrictions will be loosened from February onwards, the prime minister has said, shortly after country’s Covid vaccination pass comes into effect. Jean Castex said on Thursday the pass will come into effect on 24 January, provided it is approved by the Constitutional Council.
• Austria announced it will introduce a national vaccine lottery to encourage holdouts to get shots and has extended Covid lockdown measures for another ten days. MPs voted to approve a Covid-19 vaccine mandate which will apply to all residents of Austria aged 18 and over.
• England will soon scrap virtually all Covid measures, the health secretary confirmed.
• Germany reported another record rise of 133,536 daily new cases. It is the second consecutive day the European country has broken a pandemic record, with 234 deaths also reported, according to recently updated figures from the Robert Koch Institute.

Australia and New Zealand:

• Australia’s drugs regulator has for the first time approved oral treatments for Covid-19 which should help address supply shortages of other treatments.
• Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Association has also given provisional approval to the protein-based Novavax Covid-19 vaccine.
• New Zealand’s prime minister Jacinda Ardern has said restrictions will be tightened if there is a community transmission of Omicron.
• The state of Western Australia has cancelled plans to reopen its borders on 5 February, citing health risks from a surge in Omicron cases elsewhere in the country, as the tally of coronavirus cases since the pandemic began topped two million.

Asia:

• Taiwan will mandate the use of passes for proof of Covid vaccination to enter entertainment venues.
• Thailand will resume its ‘Test & Go’ quarantine waiver for vaccinated arrivals starting on 1 February, the country’s coronavirus taskforce said on Thursday.
• Japan recorded a daily rise of 41,377 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, shattering the record it set a day earlier by about 10,000 as the government puts more prefectures under a quasi-state of emergency.
• Hong Kong will likely suspend face-to-face teaching in secondary schools from 24 January, local media reports.
• China’s capital Beijing has ramped up efforts to curb Covid-19 infections, ordering checks among cold-chain firms and urging residents to cut unnecessary gatherings.

United States:

• US president Joe Biden has admitted that more should have been done in terms of Covid-19 testing availability earlier in the pandemic.
• The US is set to require Covid vaccines for essential workers crossing borders.

Africa:

• Cases of Covid have sharply declined in Africa and deaths are declining for the first time since the emergence of the Omicron variant, the World Health Organization has said.