Public Health
Websites/Multiple Documents
Description:
"...YANGON: More than a quarter of Myanmar's prison population is to be released, the president's office announced Friday, as calls grow to ease pressure on overcrowded jails with coronavirus fears gripping the country.The Southeast Asian nation grants an annual amnesty to thousands of prisoners to mark its April New Year holiday, but this is the largest ever recorded.It comes as governments around the world -- including the US, parts of Europe, and Colombia -- grapple with overcrowded prisons as fears spiral of virus outbreaks behind bars....So far Myanmar has officially confirmed 85 cases of Covid-19, including four deaths, but experts fear the real number is many times more due to the low numbers tested..."
Source/publisher:
Bangkok Post
Date of publication:
2020-04-17
Date of entry/update:
2020-04-18
Grouping:
Websites/Multiple Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
more
Description:
"....Responding to the failure to release prisoners of conscience and activists jailed solely for exercising their rights in Myanmar during a presidential amnesty of nearly 25,000 prisoners, Clare Algar, Amnesty International’s Senior Director for Research, Advocacy and Policy, said:....“It’s appalling that prisoners of conscience and peaceful activists were largely excluded from yesterday’s presidential amnesty. They should not be in prison in the first place and are victims of repression, harassment and arbitrary arrests by the Myanmar authorities, both the civilian-led government and the military..."
Source/publisher:
Amnesty International
Date of publication:
2020-04-18
Date of entry/update:
2020-04-19
Grouping:
Websites/Multiple Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
more
Description:
"Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals" (1920, C.E.A. Winslow).[1] It is concerned with threats to health based on population health analysis. The population in question can be as small as a handful of people or as large as all the inhabitants of several continents (for instance, in the case of a pandemic). The dimensions of health can encompass "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity", as defined by the United Nations? World Health Organization.[2] Public health incorporates the interdisciplinary approaches of epidemiology, biostatistics and health services. Environmental health, community health, behavioral health, health economics, public policy, insurance medicine and occupational health (respectively occupational medicine) are other important subfields..."
Source/publisher:
Wikipedia
Date of entry/update:
2012-07-31
Grouping:
Websites/Multiple Documents
Category:
Public Health
Language:
English
more
Description:
"About this blog:
This blog is jointly written by a group of Myanmar Public Health Professionals.
Our objectives are: To disseminate public health concepts and practices, To present contemporary international public health issues, To present and discuss public health problems of Myanmar "..." မျှဝေလိုသူများအတွက်
ဒီဘလော့ဂ်က စာရေးသူအများ စုပေါင်းရေးတဲ့ ဘလောဂ်ဖြစ်ပြီး ပို့စ်တွေကို ပြန်လည် ကူးယူဖေါ်ပြလိုပါက ဘလော့ဂ်လိပ်စာနဲ့ စာရေးသူ နာမည်ကို အညွန်းထည့်ပေးပြီး ဘယ်သူမဆို ပြန်လည်ကူးယူ ဖေါ်ပြနိုင်ပါတယ်။ ထပ်ဆင့်ပြန်ဖေါ်ပြသူအားလုံးကို ကျေးဇူးတင်ပါတယ်။
Blog Admins"
Source/publisher:
Public Health in Myanmar
Date of entry/update:
2012-07-24
Grouping:
Websites/Multiple Documents
Category:
Public Health, Burma/Myanmar Health blogs
Language:
Burmese (မြန်မာဘာသာ)
more
Individual Documents
Sub-title:
Medical staff accuse military chiefs of prioritising their own interests above those of the public during the pandemic
Description:
"Staff at dozens of hospitals across Myanmar stopped working on Wednesday as part of a growing civil disobedience campaign, one of the first organised acts of defiance against the military after it ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi.
Health workers in 70 hospitals and medical departments in Naypyidaw, Yangon and other towns and cities said they would not work under the military regime, accusing the generals of placing their own priorities above those of ordinary people during the pandemic.
“We refuse to obey any order from the illegitimate military regime who demonstrated they do not have any regards for our poor patients,” the organisers said. A Facebook page coordinating the campaign accumulated nearly 150,000 followers in just 24 hours. “They will not stop this movement until the elected government is restored,” said Kyaw, a surgeon at West Yangon general hospital who has gone on strike.
“I am upset about being apart from the patients, but I have no regrets, knowing that I did my best to help fight the pandemic,” he said, adding that he had resigned from the government hospital were he worked.
Doctors are instead treating patients in their homes and at private clincis. The All Burma Federation of Students Union has also urged other government workers to strike.
There have been no reports of street demonstrations against the army, but anger is simmering among the public, who lived under repressive military regimesfor five decades.
On Wednesday night, the clanging of pots and pans echoed through the main city of Yangon, as people took to their balconies in a symbolic protest against the military. On social media, many adopted red profile pictures to signal their loyalty to Aung San Suu Kyi, who spent nearly 15 years in detention as she campaigned against military rule before being released in 2010. Within Myanmar, she is widely revered as a heroine of democracy, despite international condemnation over her treatment of the Rohingya..."
Source/publisher:
"The Guardian" (UK)
Date of publication:
2021-02-03
Date of entry/update:
2021-02-03
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Racial or ethnic discrimination in Burma: reports of violations against several groups, National and State constitutions, draft constitutions and amendments (commentary), The 2020 General Elections in Burma/Myanmar, Freedom of opinion and expression: - the situation in Burma/Myanmar - reports, analyses, recommendations, Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"Myanmar on Friday (Jan 22) received 1.5 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine supplied by India to inoculate 750,000 people, the first vaccine batch delivered to the Southeast Asian country as it fights one of the worst COVID-19 outbreaks in the region.
India is donating millions of doses of vaccines to a string of countries in Asia, drawing praise from neighbours and pushing back against China's dominating presence in the region. Shipments of AstraZeneca’s vaccine manufactured by the Serum Institute of India, the world's biggest producer of vaccines, have already gone to the Maldives, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Nepal.
READ: Sanitation worker gets first shot as India launches 'world's largest' COVID-19 vaccination campaign
Myanmar was among the countries next in line to get free consignments as India moved before China which has also pledged to supply vaccines to its neighbour.
"This is a gift from India to Myanmar," Saurabh Kumar, India's ambassador to Myanmar, told reporters at Yangon airport, where he oversaw the arrival of the vaccine. Myanmar health ministry spokeswoman Khin Khin Gyi said the vaccine would be kept in Yangon in special refrigerated rooms before being rolled out next week.
"Healthcare workers will be first priority and elderly people will be next," she said, noting Myanmar has more than 110,000 medical workers.
Despite the arrival of vaccines, Khin Khin Gyi urged people in Myanmar not to get complacent and follow health protocols to prevent further spread of the virus..."
Source/publisher:
"CNA" ( Singapore)
Date of publication:
2021-01-22
Date of entry/update:
2021-01-23
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"Beijing will "pressingly" deliver COVID-19 vaccines to Myanmar to help its Asian neighbor control the pandemic, according to Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Monday.
Just on Sunday alone, Myanmar's Ministry of Health and Sports reported 555 more COVID-19 cases, bringing the tally to 130,604.
"I believe the friendship between China and Myanmar will deepen further through test of the COVID-19 pandemic," Wang told Myanmar President U Win Myint in Nay Pyi Taw, capital of Myanmar. The Chinese diplomat has just embarked on his six-day Southeast Asia tour, just a day after his Africa visit.
On his part, the Myanmar president first spoke highly of the relationship between the two countries. "Although in time of a global pandemic, [Wang] still came visit as one of the first [diplomats]," he said.
He also vowed to deepen the ties and is willing to cooperate with Beijing in sectors including COVID-19 vaccine, culture and tourism..."
Source/publisher:
CGTN (China)
Date of publication:
2021-01-11
Date of entry/update:
2021-01-12
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Sub-title:
Border opens to prevent Thais sneaking back in
Description:
"The border district of Mae Sot is on alert for a large number of Thais working in a casino in Myawaddy to flee the continued spread of the coronavirus in Myanmar.
Opas Kankawinpong, director-general of the Disease Control Department, expected hundreds of Thai workers at a casino in the cross-border town to move back through the district in Tak soon after the province temporarily reopens the checkpoint to allow them through.
“We have estimated hundreds of Thais are stuck there. We don’t know how many of them have been infected,” a video clip posted on the department Facebook page on Sunday quoted him as saying. The latest batch of Thai returnees -- believed to number 40 -- arrived on Thursday. Seventeen of them tested positive and were sent to Mae Sot Hospital. They worked for the Sky Complex casino, just across the Moei River that separates Mae Sot and Myawaddy..."
Source/publisher:
Bangkok Post (Thailand)
Date of publication:
2020-01-10
Date of entry/update:
2021-01-11
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
more
Sub-title:
A coronavirus outbreak in Tachileik has shone a rare spotlight on border-based hotels, KTVs and casinos with links to powerful armed groups, whose open flouting of pandemic restrictions has put Myanmar and Thailand in danger.
Description:
"On November 25, Ma Nang, 18, lost her sense of smell.
Known as anosmia, it is one of the most common symptoms of COVID-19. In hotspots across Myanmar, thousands of people have reported losing their sense of smell, and many have later tested positive for the coronavirus.
But Ma Nang was not in a COVID-19 hotspot, and had neither travelled to an area with COVID-19 cases nor seemingly been in contact with any infected people.
The resident of Tachileik, in eastern Shan State on the border with Thailand’s Mae Sai, had been working as a KTV singer at 1G1-7 Hotel until November 16, when she quit her job. She travelled north to Kengtung for a few days with friends but fell ill after returning to her hometown.
“I went to a fever clinic but I wasn’t worried – there were no cases in Tachileik,” Ma Nang said. “I was shocked when the test came back positive.”
Until her positive test, Tachileik, which is sometimes referred to as the capital of the Golden Triangle – the notoriously lawless area where the borders of Myanmar, Thailand and Laos meet – had seemingly escaped Myanmar’s “second wave” of COVID-19. Since the first cases emerged in Rakhine State and Yangon in late August, the virus has gradually spread across most of the country. Eastern Shan State is one of the few exceptions: it has recorded the lowest number of cases outside Kayah State, which only registered its first patient in October.
In the week before Ma Nang tested positive, several other cases had been detected in Tachileik but they had all been among people undergoing quarantine, with no evidence to suggest the virus had spread in the community.
In response to her positive test, the Tachileik District COVID-19 Prevention and Rapid Response committee issued a notice on November 28 advising residents to stay at home, to adhere to a curfew and not to hold gatherings. Restaurants were told to only sell take-away, and anyone with COVID-19 symptoms was advised to immediately visit a fever clinic. Residents needed little warning; the streets would be mostly deserted for the next two weeks. “Of course, I’m worried about the virus,” said U San Shwe Myint, owner of Happy restaurant. “In the circumstances I decided it would be better to close my restaurant completely.”
By mid-December the outbreak was mostly under control, with few new cases of community transmission. But the emergence of COVID-19 in eastern Shan State raises serious questions about the enforcement of prevention measures, including the closure of high-risk venues, monitoring of overland travellers and control of international borders..."
Source/publisher:
"Frontier Myanmar" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-12-23
Date of entry/update:
2021-01-05
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
more
Description:
"As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to affect the lives of millions across Myanmar, UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, is expanding its support to the Government of Myanmar's national response.
On 16 December, UNHCR handed over 50,000 Cobas SARS-CoV-2 Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test kits to the Union Ministry of Health and Sports in Nay Pyi Taw.
The arrival of the test kits adds on to an earlier contribution of 20,000 kits by UNHCR and WFP in July. Collectively, over 145,000 test kits have been handed over to Government by the wider United Nations system as part of a joint response to date.
“UNHCR continues to support the Government’s nationwide efforts to contain the COVID-19 pandemic and ensure that vulnerable communities are not left out”, said UNCHR Representative in Myanmar Ms. Hai Kyung Jun.
The Refugee Agency has so far equipped over 400 quarantine centres with basic items such as beds, blankets, kitchen sets and hygiene kits, and distributed 685,200 pieces of personal protective equipment (PPE) for front-line workers and vulnerable communities, including gloves, masks, disposable gowns and face shields. An additional batch of 367,000 N95 masks is expected to arrive by the end of the year and will be distributed to counterpart ministries.
UNHCR has also stepped-up campaigns to raise awareness on COVID-19 prevention in camps and sites for internally displaced people and stateless persons, as well as health, water, sanitation and hygiene services in these locations by installing new water points and distributing hygiene items such as soap and hand sanitizer.
To date, over 670,000 people across Kachin, Rakhine and Shan states as well as the South East region of Myanmar have benefitted from the collective efforts of the Government, UNHCR, sister UN agencies and partner humanitarian organizations in providing life-saving assistance to those in need..."
Source/publisher:
UN High Commissioner for Refugees (Geneva) via Reliefweb (New York)
Date of publication:
2020-12-17
Date of entry/update:
2021-01-04
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
Format :
pdf pdf
Size:
468.96 KB 482.59 KB
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Sub-title:
The latest outbreak was first detected at a seafood market near Bangkok, prompting a flare-up in online hate speech.
Description:
"“Wherever you see Myanmar people, shoot them down,” read one Thai comment on YouTube after a surge of coronavirus cases among workers from Myanmar.
The outbreak, first detected at a seafood market near Bangkok, has prompted a surge in online hate speech as well as questions over Thailand’s treatment of millions of migrant workers.....“Myanmar people are being labelled for transmitting COVID-19, but the virus doesn’t discriminate,” said Sompong Srakaew of the Labour Protection Network, a Thai group helping migrant workers.
Shifting sentiment has had real consequences, he said, with workers from Myanmar, previously known as Burma, being blocked from buses, motorcycle taxis and offices.....“Myanmar people are being labelled for transmitting COVID-19, but the virus doesn’t discriminate,” said Sompong Srakaew of the Labour Protection Network, a Thai group helping migrant workers.
Shifting sentiment has had real consequences, he said, with workers from Myanmar, previously known as Burma, being blocked from buses, motorcycle taxis and offices..."
Source/publisher:
"Al Jazeera" (Qatar)
Date of publication:
2020-12-24
Date of entry/update:
2021-01-03
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Discrimination: standards and mechanisms, Thailand-Burma relations, COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"The Ministry of Health and Sports said that 15 died of dengue in June and July this year. Most of the victims of dengue are from the age group of 5-9.
Ministry of Health and Sports Deputy Director and Dengue Prevention Project Manager Dr. Nay Yee Yee Lynn said that dengue fever was caused by a virus and this disease is transmitted by Aedes mosquito. The patient may die of dengue when infected. We need to distinguish between dengue and COVID-19 when the patient gets fever.”
The high prevalence of this virus is mostly found in Sagaing Region, Shan State (East), Mon State and Karen State..."
Source/publisher:
"Mizzima" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-07-30
Date of entry/update:
2020-07-31
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Dengue, Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"Myanmar reported three more imported cases of COVID-19 on Friday night, bringing the total number of infections to 346, according to the Health and Sports Ministry.
The newly-confirmed cases are under quarantine in Chin and Kayin states after their recent arrivals from India and Thailand.
According to the ministry, 286 patients have recovered as of Friday.
Myanmar reported its first two confirmed cases on March 23, and the death toll stands at six..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-07-24
Date of entry/update:
2020-07-24
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"On International Workers’ Day, May 1, President U Win Myint offered a statement about the government’s commitment to tranquil workplaces, fair and proper dispute settlement processes, freedom for independent trade unions, and workers’ safety through tripartite efforts. However, the message had a caveat: “You [Workers] also need to be especially aware that outside instigators can incite unlawful demonstrations and unrest for personal or political gains.” Indeed, if the government is effectively protecting labor rights and is dedicated to tripartite efforts, then there seems no need or justification for protest. But the government’s rhetoric is a far cry from reality.
The government has, in fact, dismissed unionists’ suggestions, disregarded their formal disputes, and used COVID-19 to justify intimidation and arrests of protestors. Employers have ignored COVID-19 related concerns raised by unionists, exploited their inability to strike, and used the pandemic as an opportunity to sack unionists en masse. The government and employers have weaponized COVID-19 to union-bust so that unionists have had to scramble and employ different tactics to protect themselves and other workers..."
Source/publisher:
"Teacircleoxford" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-07-09
Date of entry/update:
2020-07-11
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"Myanmar Vice-President Henry Van Thio says the country is unlikely to open to international commercial passenger flights until October.
At a meeting of the National Tourism Development Central Committee on Tuesday, the vice-president said that airports are expected to resume operations for international commercial passenger flights only after the third quarter of this year.
The Myanmar government has said that when airports can resume operation, it will announce the reopening of its tourism sector to ASEAN and Asian countries. The government also plans to take part in “travel bubbles” with Thailand and Vietnam, including direct flights to and from Myanmar.
“Travel bubbles” are exclusive partnerships between countries that have demonstrated considerable success in containing and combating the COVID-19 pandemic within their respective borders. The program will allow people to travel within the zone without having to undergo quarantines on arrival.
The vice-president also said that, if the initial travel agreements are successful, the Myanmar government will establish travel bubbles with Japan, Korea, China, Hong Kong and Macao, as he said they have achieved considerable success in containing the coronavirus.
Myanmar has banned all international commercial passenger flights since March 31. The government has extended the ban a number of times since then, with the latest ban in effect until July 31. Relief, cargo, medical evacuation and special flights approved by the Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) as well as domestic flights, however, are not affected by the ban..."
Source/publisher:
"The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of publication:
2020-07-11
Date of entry/update:
2020-07-11
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"A girl wearing a face mask plays with soap bubbles at a park in downtown Yangon, Myanmar, July 7, 2020. The total number of COVID-19 cases in Myanmar has increased to 316, with three more confirmed cases on Monday, according to a release from the Ministry of Health and Sports..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-07-07
Date of entry/update:
2020-07-07
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"Seven new cases of COVID-19 were reported in Myanmar, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 313 as of Saturday, according to latest figures released by the Health and Sports Ministry.
The newly confirmed cases were returnees who are under facility quarantine in Yangon region after their recent arrivals from India, Bangladesh, Laos, Thailand and Singapore, the ministry's release said.
As of Saturday, a total of 81,977 samples were tested for COVID-19 in the country and 240 patients have recovered.
Myanmar reported its first two cases of COVID-19 on March 23 with six deaths so far..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-07-04
Date of entry/update:
2020-07-06
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"Myanmar has experienced a relatively lower number (290 as of 22 June 2020) of COVID-19 cases compared to many other countries, but the socioeconomic impacts of the government-imposed restrictions are having severe impacts on the population, especially older women and men. While the restrictions officially remain in place, many people cannot get by without a regular income and have returned to work, raising fears about a second wave. For government and humanitarian actors to understand the consequences of the restrictions for older people, HelpAge International in Myanmar conducted a multi-sector rapid needs assessment in May 2020 to inform programming and policy decisions..."
Source/publisher:
HelpAge via "Reliefweb" (New York)
Date of publication:
2020-07-06
Date of entry/update:
2020-07-06
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
Format :
pdf
Size:
169.61 KB (7 pages)
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Sub-title:
The total number of patients infected with COVID-19 in Myanmar has exceeded 300 after the health ministry at 8pm on July 1 reported four new cases from returnees.
Description:
"These include a 38-year-old man, Case-300 in the ministry’s list, who lives in Hlegu township and a 24-year-old man, Case-301, from Kaya township in Yangon. They are both returnees from the United Arab Emirates and were undergoing facility quarantine at a centre in South Dagon township when they tested positive. The ministry says they did not have contact with a positive patient upon arriving in Myanmar.
The other two patients are also from Yangon and they are a 28-year-old man, Case-302, from Thaketa and a 32-year-old man, Case-303, from Taikkyi. The two returned from England and did not have contact with a COVID-19 patient in Myanmar. They were also undergoing facility quarantine at a center in Hlegu Township when they tested positive. All four have been admitted to the South Okkalapa Specialist Hospital for treatment.
Myanmar has so far reported 303 COVID-19 cases including six deaths and 222 recoveries.
From May 16 to July 1 at 8pm, a total of 117 returnees have tested positive for COVID-19, according to the health ministry.
These comprise 50 returnees from India, 23 from Thailand, 17 from Malaysia, ten from the United Arab Emirates, nine from Bangladesh, three from Qatar, two from Italy, two from England and one from China..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-07-01
Date of entry/update:
2020-07-02
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"Twelve cases confirmed in Rakhine State with one local transmission from a known contact in Buthidaung Township and eight among people with travel history in Bangladesh.
• Limited local transmission with majority of cases confirmed among returning migrants. No cases have been reported in camps for internally displaced people (IDP) or displacement sites. A total of 293 cases, six fatalities and 215 recoveries have been confirmed across the country.
• More than 111,600 migrant workers have returned, including 71,735 from Thailand since March, per the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
• Four humanitarian flights arrived in Myanmar in June, carrying sets of protective items, medical supplies as well as humanitarian and relief personnel.
• Nearly 1,000 schools in conflict-affected areas used as quarantine facilities are disinfected and being prepared for classes as Government plans to reopen schools in mid-July.
• Preparedness and response activities across camps and displacement sites, as well as in quarantine centers, continue by government and humanitarian actors.
• The Addendum to the 2020 Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) has been revised, with a total of 915,000 people targeted and financial requirements of US$275.3 million.
• A total of US$54 million has been contributed to the 2020 HRP, including $15 million to the COVID-19 Addendum– FTS..."
Source/publisher:
OCHA (New York) via Reliefweb (New York)
Date of publication:
2020-06-29
Date of entry/update:
2020-07-01
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
Format :
pdf pdf
Size:
314.73 KB 231.83 KB
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Description:
"The Myanmar government has lifted the stay-at-home orders in all designated townships after seeing no new COVID-19 cases in the areas, a health official told Xinhua on Tuesday.
The government imposed partial lockdown, named "Stay at Home" in 10 townships of Yangon region and one in Sagaing region as the townships registered most infection cases of COVID-19.
On Tuesday, Insein, one of the townships in Yangon region, was last removed from the stay-at-home measures while others were removed separately in May and earlier this month.
"We have brought the pandemic under control to some extent in the country, with everyone's participation," said Director of Health Literacy Promotion Unit, Public Health Department under the Health and Sports Ministry, Than Naing Soe.
Meanwhile, Myanmar's State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi said in a post on social media on Monday that the effective measures may prevent the country from the second wave of COVID-19 in a couple of months while restrictions of mass gatherings are still in effect and urged people to be alert of asymptomatic transmissions.
According to the ministry's figures, Myanmar has reported 299 confirmed cases of COVID-19 with six deaths while the number of recovered patients reaches 221 as of Tuesday morning..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-06-30
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-30
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"As of 29 June 2020, there have been 299 confirmed cases, including six fatalities and 218 recoveries across the country. The rate of local transmission has been low so far with cases confirmed mainly among people returning from abroad..."
Source/publisher:
OCHA (New York) via Reliefweb (New York)
Date of publication:
2020-06-30
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-30
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
Format :
pdf
Size:
924.7 KB
more
Sub-title:
The government’s efforts to improve its testing capacity for COVID-19 is moving at a snail’s pace due to a lack of money, with a laboratory in Lashio township in Shan State unlikely to be ready for at least three months.
Description:
"While Myanmar has so far effectively mitigated the spread of the disease through quarantines, contact-tracing and targeted lockdowns, testing remains one of the most effective ways of quickly identifying cases.
Myanmar has five testing centres – one in Mandalay, one in Mawlamyine in Mon State, and three in Yangon, which is the epicentre of the virus outbreak in the country.
As of June 28, these laboratories had tested 71,692 people, according to the Health and Sports Ministry.
Dr Than Soe Naing, director of the ministry, said it would take about three months for Lashio township to get its own COVID-19 tests as the laboratory isn’t finished yet. But he added that the testing facility in Taunggyi township in Shan could start operating early next month. Dr Thuzar Chit Tin, head of the state’s Public Health Department, said a donor who was supposed to finance construction of the laboratory in Taunggyi had backed out, so the Shan government had to find other funding sources..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-06-29
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-29
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
" Myanmar authorities have brought back 5,171 Myanmar nationals home from abroad by relief flights as of Thursday, according to a release from the Foreign Affairs Ministry.
Due to the suspension of international commercial flights during the COVID-19 pandemic, the government has been making efforts to bring back its citizens stranded in foreign countries, in cooperation with the authorities concerned.
On Thursday morning, 143 Myanmar citizens stranded in the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain arrived at the Yangon International Airport.
It was learnt that a total of 139 Myanmar nationals including 28 seamen from the Philippines and 15 nationals including seamen from Bangladesh will arrive late on Thursday.
According to the release, all returnees will be put under quarantine at designated facilities or hotels in Yangon region for 21 days on their arrivals.
Myanmar has reported 293 confirmed cases of COVID-19 with six deaths as of Thursday, said the latest figures by the Health and Sports Ministry..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-06-25
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-26
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Sub-title:
The international aid group Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has wound down a 17-year HIV programme in Yangon, transferring about 17,000 patients to government care, an official of the Geneva-based group said in a statement on June 22.
Description:
"The project has provided free medical treatment for HIV patients with antiretroviral (ARV) therapy at its clinic in Thaketa township since 2003.
The statement said the transfer “represents a milestone for both the MSF and for Myanmar, underlining the country’s growing capacity to provide ARV treatment to people living with HIV.” “The Yangon project ... also followed up by piloting onsite treatment for co-infections,” said Pavlo Kolovos, MSF’s head of mission in Myanmar. “Our free of charge [multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis] treatment was piloted in 2009 and hepatitis C treatment followed in 2016.”
“This represents a unique and innovative model of care, and MSF continues to advocate for these approaches to be taken up by other HIV care providers,” he added.
MSF gave free medical treatment at clinics in Hlaing Tharyar, Insein and Thaketa townships. It also delivered medicine to patients who couldn’t come to a clinic, as well as mental health help, said Dr Soe Yadanar, the Thaketa clinic’s manager. U Tin Tun, a patient, said he has been treated by MSF for more than 15 years.
MSF cured more than 60,000 people in Kachin State, Shan State and Tanintharyi Region, and transferred nearly 25,000 patients from 2016 to December 2019.
MSF will continue providing HIV treatment and prevention measures targeting vulnerable groups and infected people in Kachin, Shan and Tanintharyi, and will remain in Yangon..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-06-25
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-25
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
HIV/AIDS - Burma/Myanmar, Public Health
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Description:
"Myanmar saw a decline in number of Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever cases in first five months of this year, compared to the corresponding period of last year, a health official said on Wednesday.
From January to May this year, the country registered 1,408 dengue infections with 11 deaths, while 2,283 cases were reported with 13 deaths in the same period of last year, said Nay Yi Yi Lin, project manager of Dengue Fever Prevention and Control Program and deputy director of the Public Health Department under the Health and Sports Ministry.
Regionally, the mosquito-borne dengue fever cases were mostly reported in Sagaing, Mandalay, Yangon, Magway regions and Mon state.
The ministry has carried out preventive measures against common monsoon diseases including vector-borne diseases since early April, the project manager said.
The health ministry is making strenuous efforts to accelerate preventive and control measures against the dengue fever with a national plan to reduce the infection and mortality rates.
According to the ministry's figures, Myanmar reported over 23,000 dengue fever cases with over 100 deaths last year.
Dengue fever is transmitted by the bites of the Aedes mosquito and mostly occurs in the months of June, July and August of Myanmar's rainy season..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-06-24
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-25
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Dengue, Public Health
Language:
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Description:
"Since March 2020, the Karen National Union (KNU) has been organizing a widespread campaign to
protect communities in their areas against Covid-19. They have organised virus prevention trainings
for health personnel in each district, and distributed protective materials and thermometers. These
personnel have conducted health awareness campaigns, and, together with local communities, set up
screening checkpoints on key access roads for anyone entering their areas.
This rapid mobilizing was made possible by the KNU health department’s long experience in developing
responsive, culturally appropriate programming in rural areas, as necessitated by decades of civil war
and structural flaws in the Burmese government health system – whose rigid centralized approach has
proven woefully inefficient and unaccountable in addressing basic health needs of ethnic populations.
By April, the KNU Covid-19 Response Team had set up 49 screening posts in seven districts, including
along the Thai-Burma border.
But in the last week of April, the Burma Army began shutting down these Karen screening posts. Four
posts were ordered shut in Doothahtoo (Thaton) district (KNU Brigade 1), and on May 6, the Burma Army
set fire to two checkpoints in southern Mutraw (Hpa-pun) district (KNU Brigade 5), causing armed clashes
with the KNU and displacing over 480 villagers from Wa Tho Khoh village, where the Burma Army had shot
and injured two elderly civilians in January this year. . On June 2, another screening post was destroyed by
the Burma Army in Kler Lwe Htoo (Nyaunglebin) district (KNU Brigade 3)..."
Source/publisher:
Karen Peace Support Network (KPSN) via Burma Campaign UK
Date of publication:
2020-06-00
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-24
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Public Health, COVID-19 (Coronavirus)
Language:
Format :
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Description:
"A total of 286 cases with six fatalities and 187 recoveries have been confirmed in Myanmar. Sixteen cases have been confirmed in Rakhine State, including six with recent travel history in Bangladesh. Contacts are being traced and identified contacts are in quarantine.
• Two cases confirmed among healthcare workers in Momauk Township of Kachin State and in Muse Township of northern Shan State - two of three local transmissions in June so far. No cases have been confirmed in camps or sites for internally displaced people (IDPs).
• Close to 100,000 migrants returned between 22 March to 10 June, according to IOM, with some 62,650 of this returning from Thailand.
Small scale returns continue to be recorded on a daily basis.
• Government and humanitarian partners continue to undertake COVID-19 preparedness and response, while maintaining life-saving humanitarian operations across camps and displacement sites.
• The next iteration of 2020 Humanitarian Response Plan COVID Addendum is underway, with updated planning scenarios and figures, is expected to be finalized by end of June.
• Myanmar Humanitarian Fund has allocated US$3.8 million to 10 new projects, while 21 ongoing projects have been reprogrammed for a total of $0.35 million for COVID-19 preparedness and response..."
Source/publisher:
OCHA (New York) via Reliefweb (New York)
Date of publication:
2020-06-22
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-23
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Sub-title:
Desperate for cash and low on work, rural households are turning to high-interest loans from informal moneylenders as microfinance companies are forced to cut back on credit.
Description:
"On May 11, a storm swept through a village in Magway Region and battered the house of Ko Win Kyaw Soe. The need for repairs was urgent, he said, but without the money to cover costs or the time to jump through the hoops of a microfinance loan application, he reluctantly turned to an illegal moneylender.
The decision has beckoned another storm – one of high interest rates and spiralling debt, and the possibility of threats and violence. But the economic turmoil brought by COVID-19 restrictions has left desperate borrowers like Win Kyaw Soe with little choice.
For Win Kyaw Soe, the monthly interest of 20 percent on the K100,000 sum to fix his home in Tat Kone village in Magway Township would have been steep at the best of times. But measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus had recently forced the temporary closure of the beer station where he was a waiter in Magway town, and for the time being he has no income.
“I’m not sure I can pay back the capital, much less the interest,” Win Kyaw Oo told Frontier. “But I will do my best to pay the interest, at least.” Support independent journalism in Myanmar. Sign up to be a Frontier member.
If he is unable to clear the loan within 30 days, he will have the choice of paying K20,000 to cover the interest or having it added to his loan. If he makes no repayments for 10 months, he will owe the principal plus K200,000 in interest.
The moneylenders who provide quick cash to people like Win Kyaw Oo in desperate situations are often portrayed as predatory, seeking to trap their clients in an ever-spiralling burden of debt.
But Win Kyaw Oo’s lender, who spoke to Frontier on the condition of anonymity, said this was exactly what she didn’t want. Yes, her interest rates are high, but this reflects the risk that she will not be paid back. And without such loans, people in need would have few other ways to access cash quickly, she added..."
Source/publisher:
"Frontier Myanmar" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-06-18
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-19
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Description:
" More than 8,000 people were prosecuted in nearly three months across the country for breaching COVID-19 rules, according to the President’s Office.
Myanmar reported the first COVID-19 cases on March 23 and has since reported 286 cases with six deaths and more than half of the patients recovering.
Several COVID-19 restrictions, including a ban on public events and large gatherings, suspension of travel visas and international flights were extended until June 30 after the continuation of imported cases as nationals returned from overseas and a few infections inside the country were reported.
President’s Office spokesman U Zaw Htay told the media on Friday that 8,470 people have faced action since late March under the Prevention and Control of Communicable Diseases Law and 176 people under the Natural Disaster Management Law.
Businesses which failed to follow the government’s coronavirus prevention instructions have also been prosecuted.
Violations have included assaulting and abusing health care workers, refusing to stay in or fleeing from quarantine centers, organizing religious gatherings and weddings or other defiance of the ban on gatherings and failing to follow nighttime curfews.
Last month, Yangon’s chief minister U Phyo Min Thein, his wife and members of his cabinet were reported with the Yangon police for allegedly breaking the Natural Disaster Management Law for attending a Buddhist event. The chief minister denied the accusations and the police did not accept the report.
The National League for Democracy told the media that it had warned the chief minister against breaching restrictions on gatherings.
The communicable diseases law carries a maximum punishment of six months in prison while those prosecuted under the disaster law can face up to three years in prison.
Topics: Chief Minister U Phyo Min Thein, coronavirus, COVID-19, Natural Disaster Management Law, Prevention and Control of Communicable Diseases Law, quarantine..."
Source/publisher:
"The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of publication:
2020-06-19
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-19
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Sub-title:
One more Myanmar citizen returning from Bangladesh has tested positive for COVID-19, according to the health ministry at 8am on June 18. Meanwhile, six more patients are on the road to recovery.
Description:
"Myanmar has so far reported 263 COVID-19 cases including six deaths and 185 recoveries.
The latest patient is a 17-year-old Rakhine Muslim girl, Case-263, from Buthidaung township in Rakhine State. The girl was undergoing community-based facility quarantine at a centre in Buthidaung township where she tested positive. “[Case-263] is one of the family members of a 63-year-old Rakhine Muslim, Case-262, who entered to Maungdaw township from Bangladesh. According to our contact tracing of Case-262, we discovered a total of 34 close contacts. Case-263 was among those who tested positive,” Dr U Soe Win Paing, assistant director and spokeperson of the Rakhine State Public Health Department told The Myanmar Times.
“The remaining tested negative. The girl has now been admitted to Buthidaung General Hospital for treatment,” he added.
The Rakhine State Public Health Department also confirmed that 32 close contacts of Case-234, 47 close contacts of Case-244, nine close contacts of Case-247 and Case-248, and eight close contacts of Case-250 tested negative, according to National Health Laboratory (NHL) from Yangon. Up until June 18 morning 8am, Rakhine State has reported nine confirmed cases.
They are four returnees from Maungdaw, three from Buthidaung, one from Taunggok and one from Thandwe Township. Among them, a 35-year-old is on the road to recovery, the health ministry said on June 15. The recovered patient in Rakhine State is a returnee from Malaysia.
From January 31 to June 17, 1083 samples from Rakhine State have been sent over to NHL in Yangon for testing, according to the State Public Health Department..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-06-18
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-18
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Description:
"The Covid-19 pandemic has brought forward the role of the governments in not only addressing the health crisis but also on how to address issues of vulnerability and disruptions that the population has faced due to the restrictive measures related to public events, transport, trade, businesses and stay at home orders during the past three months to contain the spread of the virus.
In several parts of the world, the pandemic curve is still ascending and countries and their people are facing hardships of unimaginable proportions. Social protection has been identified as a significant short to medium term intervention. Call for universal basic income and social protection for all have come to the fore of conversations among economists, policymakers and activists across the globe.
Several advanced, as well as emerging economies, have identified the need for supporting the poor and vulnerable as well as the businesses as a policy response in order to stave off the adverse downturn of the economy. Both on the supply as well as the demand-side stimulus has been proposed. And this has opened up the limitations of market based economic development approach which could not cope with the impact of the pandemic which has not spared any sector. The increased role of the government in the economy can be seen from the way countries have responded swiftly by providing social protection to the poor and vulnerable during the pandemic. A global real-time review on social protection response of countries, compiled by World Bank and UNICEF staff, has identified that currently 195 countries/territories have planned or introduced social protection measures in response to COVID-19. Cash transfers, universal one-off cash disbursement, child care support and social pensions have been the measures taken by countries as social assistance programs to meet the needs of the vulnerable. Apart from these, in-kind food/vouchers for food, and school feeding programs and public works programs (food for work, cash for work) have also been initiated in order to stabilize the families. These support measures, ranging from 1 month to 12 months (with an average of 3 months) across the globe are estimated to reach to about 1.7 billion people (costing 0.4% of global GDP). While the amount of assistance may vary depending on the stage of development of the country, it is important to underscore that massive government intervention to stabilize incomes of the people is an important element of COVID-19 response across most countries. New stimulus measures in an advanced economy like the USA included cash transfers involving an average one-off payment of US$1200 to adult member and US$500 for a child to low earning families, emergency food stamps assistance, subsidized utility payments, paid sick leave and emergency withdrawals of old-age pension contributions, etc. In the USA new cash transfers are expected to reach 24 per cent of the population..."
Source/publisher:
"Mizzima" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-06-16
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-16
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Sub-title:
Another Rakhine man who returned to Myanmar from Bangladesh has tested positive for COVID-19, according to the Health and Sports Ministry at 8am on June 15.
Description:
"So far, Myanmar has reported a total of 262 COVID-19 cases including six deaths and 167 recoveries.
The latest case is a 63-year-old Rakhine Muslim man, Case-262, from Buthidaung township in Rakhine State. The man was undergoing the mandatory community-based facility quarantine at a centre in Buthidaung township, where he tested positive.
“[Case-262] entered to Maungdaw township from Bangladesh. Health workers accompanied him by ambulance to Buthidaung Hospital. Authorities are still currently tracing his contact history,” U Tun Aung Thein, a State legislator from Buthidaung constituency No 2 told The Myanmar Times.
The health ministry reported that the man did not have any contact with a positive patient. He has been admitted to Buthidaung General Hospital for treatment. “The patient currently lives in Buthidaung township. We have sent his five family members, who tested negative, to Hla Phoe Khaung Transit Camp. Moreover, 19 people who had close contacts with Case-262 are also being quarantined at the centre in Buthidaung. We’re currently tracing his contact history,” Dr U Soe Win Paing, spoke person of the Rakhine State Health Department said. So far, Rakhine State has reported eight confirmed cases of COVID-19. Four are from Maungdaw, two from Buthidaung, one from Taunggok and one from Thandwe township.
From May 16 to June 15 at 8pm, a total of 77 Myanmar citizens who returned from overseas have tested positive for COVID-19, according to the Ministry of Health and Sports. These comprise 45 returnees from India, 13 from Malaysia, eight from the United Arab Emirates, six from Bangladesh, two from Thailand, two from Italy, and one from China..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-06-15
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-16
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Description:
"As Myanmar’s efforts to contain the coronavirus continue, State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi warned on Saturday that anyone who has illegally entered the country and anyone aiding them will face legal action.
“Those who come into the country illegally, those who receive them knowingly, and those who cover up will be dealt with strictly and severely according to the law,” she wrote, reiterating the government’s stance.
Prior to her warning, the National-Level Central Committee for Prevention, Control and Treatment of COVID-19 said Wednesday that some Myanmar nationals have reentered the country illegally, despite government efforts to process returnees at official reception centers in order to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
The committee warned that “if anyone enters Myanmar through any unauthorized entry point from a foreign country and if such person has been accepted with the knowledge that such person has entered the country illegally, it is hereby notified that legal action would be taken in accordance with prevailing laws.”
Health care staff and authorities have been conducting temperature checks and health screenings of returnees at international airports, ports and border entry points. Since mid-May, all returnees have been placed into 21-day quarantine and tested for the coronavirus before being released.
As of Sunday, 27,502 migrants have returned to Myanmar through land borders from Thailand since May 23 and thousands more have returned from China. Since April 30, 3,762 Myanmar nationals have returned on repatriation flights.
“All of us need to prevent and severely restrict illegal border crossing,” the State Counselor wrote on her Facebook. She added, regarding those who entered illegally and did not go into quarantine, that “if they carry [COVID-19] disease, it could spread to others.”
She said that conducting contact tracing for illegal returnees and placing those who were potentially exposed into quarantine is “a huge burden” for the country but a necessary measure for the people’s safety..."
Source/publisher:
"The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of publication:
2020-06-15
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-15
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Description:
"UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and Unilever are working together to enhance sanitation and hygiene for families in need in Myanmar, including those in displacement settings and host communities. The multinational company has donated some 608,000 bars of soap to prevent COVID-19.
“Handwashing remains the most basic yet effective way to prevent the disease spreading,” said Cecile Fradot, Representative ad interim for UNHCR in Myanmar. “Ensuring those most vulnerable can clean their hands, can save lives, and I thank Unilever for this generous donation.”
Displaced people are among the most marginalized and vulnerable members of our community. They are particularly at risk during this coronavirus outbreak as they often live in close quarters with intergenerational families and may face limited access to water and sanitation systems and health facilities. The hygiene items have been dispatched to Kachin, northern Shan, Rakhine, as well as Kayah and Kayin states, and will be distributed in camp settings for displaced families and other communities in need. They will also be distributed to support health departments and local authorities mitigate against the infection and spread of COVID-19..."
Source/publisher:
"Mizzima" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-06-14
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-14
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"While life in Yangon city appears to have returned to normal with the usual traffic congestion and reopening of restaurants and gyms, measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 have nonetheless been further extended.
International flight restrictions to and from Yangon International Airport have been further extended to June 30 from June 15, according to the Department of Civil Aviation. This aligns with the latest decision by the National Central Committee for Prevention, Control, and Treatment of COVID-19 to further extend temporary measures to control the spread of the coronovirus in Myanmar to June 30 from June 15. Both announcements were made on June 12.
Other measures to manage COVID-19 are still in place. These include: 1. Compulsory wearing of face masks in public; 2. A Yangon-wide curfew between 12am to 4am;
3. Lockdowns at Insein and Mayangone townships;
4. Gatherings of five persons or more, with exemptions.
The latest exemptions are:
1. Performance of duties at government departments, organisations, companies, factories and workshops;
2. Attending government, private and monastic schools;
3. Attending seminars, meetings and training at government departments, organisations, companies, factories and workshops conducted in accordance with health ministry guidelines;
4. Dining at food and beverge outlets permitted to operate dine-in services by regional governments in accordance with health ministry guidelines;
5. Working at businesses deemed essential under a May 3 notification issued by the Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population. Other exemptions to the gathering of five or more person ban include traveling to and from the workplace or hospital, trading at permitted markets and malls, transport of goods, court proceedings and funeral affairs.
Meanwhile, all government staff have been ordered to return to work as usual, while basic education schools will reopen from mid-July. High schools will recommence on July 21, with primary and middle schools starting two weeks later. Many businesses, including factories, hotels and restaurants, have also been permitted to reopen after passing government inspections..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-06-13
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-13
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
Font:
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Description:
" Myanmar government announced late Friday further extension of effective period for preventive measures against COVID-19 until the end of June.
The national-level Central Committee on Prevention, Control and Treatment on COVID-19 issued the announcement of extension measures as part of efforts to contain the spread of the disease.
It was learnt that the extension will not have effect on the measures which were lifted, but measures such as restrictions of gathering five persons or above, mass gatherings and others continue to remain in effect.
Meanwhile, some restrictions have been lifted in the areas related to the operation of factories, workshops and workplaces.
Essential businesses related to public service sector are being allowed to operate in accordance with the guidelines, Yangon Region Social Affairs Minister Naing Ngan Lin told Xinhua.
All government staff have been ordered to return to work as usual earlier this month, after temporary restriction of half of the staff to stay at home in recent months.
Meanwhile, the government is planning to reopen basic education schools in mid-July, by classifying groups of schools -- some will be reopened in regular hours while others in shifts.
As of Saturday morning, Myanmar has reported 261 COVID-19 positive cases with six deaths, according to latest figures released by the Health and Sports Ministry..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-06-13
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-13
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
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Sub-title:
Along with restaurants, bars and shops, it’s normal for gyms to close during Thingyan – Myanmar’s week-long new year’s celebrations.
Description:
"But this year, the government introduced stringent restrictions after the Thingyan holidays, effectively closing many businesses until the first week of June.
This included gyms, which have only just started to reopen – albeit with strict booking requirements, so as to avoid many patrons working out at the same time. Some have remained closed, however, leaving many owners and instructors without income or a place to stay in shape. But amidst the closures people started browsing platforms like YouTube for new home-based remedies. Some instructors took to the internet, seeking to recapture the minds and bodies of Myanmar’s energetic gym-goers, changing the way people dance, work-out and lift weights.
One such enterprising instructor was Ko Zayar Lynn, who can be seen in his trademark bright yellow stretch pants, punching out a Zumba rhythm to the beat of Burmese pop songs.
His videos were recorded during his popular classes at the Battle Ground Gym and Fitness Studio, but are now accessed by hundreds of students following his every move at home. “We can’t go to gym right now, as many have had to close. So, I created an online group for Zumba students so that they could work-out at home,” Ko Zayar Lynn said. His new company is called Stay Home Wellness.
“All the instructors were affected by the closures, and many weren’t even paid – so they had to quit their jobs. Before the pandemic I rented an apartment and turned it into a gym hall. The lease was for three years, but we only used it for eight months before being forced to close,” Ko Zayar Lynn said.
“It was depressing, but we still wanted to continue our classes, so we offered them to our students online,” said Ko Zayar Lynn..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-06-13
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-13
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"The Covid-19 Economic Relief Plan (CERP) that the government rolled out in the last week of April is a welcome initiative for a country that is suffering from both the assault of the novel coronavirus and the massive economic impact of the nationwide lockdown that the government has imposed to stop its spread. More than 50 measures were laid out in the 15-page document. But the plan is more of a wishful shopping-list, with only two items being assigned specific amounts: up to K500 billion (US$360 million) in loans for small- and medium-sized businesses in selected sectors; and K100 billion ($72 million) for trade financing. There are also a number of important measures for containing the novel coronavirus that are missing.
Logic of CERP is Unexplained
The narrative that explains the logic of the plan is absent. How the different measures are integrated is unclear. There is no prioritization of measures. Everything seems to be a priority so that, in effect, nothing is a priority. Without clear prioritization, allocating resources becomes a very haphazard process.
It has since become known that the total budget comes to 2.09 to 2.8 trillion kyat, or $1.5 to $2 billion. How this figure is arrived at is unknown but, comparing it to economic relief or stimulus packages in other countries, it is on the low side. It comes to less than 3 per cent of Myanmar’s GDP of $77 billion in 2019. In contrast, it has been reported that the economic relief fund of Thailand comes to almost 9 per cent of GDP and that of Singapore to 8 per cent. Perhaps what is coming in as emergency foreign aid from the World Bank and bilateral donors has not been factored in the CERP. But, even if one adds a generous figure of $1 billion in aid, that would make the CERP only slightly lower than 4 per cent of GDP..."
Source/publisher:
"TNI"
Date of publication:
2020-06-09
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-10
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Description:
"CSOs are essential for any country’s successful COVID-19 response. In Myanmar, civil society organisations are working quickly and efficiently on the frontlines, supporting the communities and Government in their immediate COVID-19 response. The CSOs receive both direct and indirect funding from various international organisations.
Of the 153 organisations engaged in LIFT’s COVID-19 response, 128 (or 84%) are local or national organisations - present, committed, quick and responsive to the emerging needs.
LIFT also estimates that more than 80% of the response activity is undertaken by local partners - it is they who go to villages, factories, quarantine centers, camps and border gates (while international staff and sometimes national staff from international organisations are not allowed) and it is they who provide the awareness training through loudspeakers and pamphlets, visit families in their homes, and support quarantine centers with essential materials.
By example, LIFT’s five strategic civil society partners (Karuna Mission Social Solidarity, Land Core Group, Metta, Network Activities Group, and Gender Equality Network) alone reached almost a million beneficiaries, of which half are women, within the first month of their emergency response. Their COVID work has also extended to influencing policy and practice, for example GEN's work with the Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement to announce nation-wide GBV data in collaboration with all CSOs and international organisations.
LIFT’s Decent Work and Labour Mobility programme delivered emergency support to 355,673 direct beneficiaries (of which 58% are women), across multiple states and regions of Myanmar, covering Yangon, Kayin, Mon, Shan, Tanintharyi, Bago, Chin, Mandalay, Magway, Bago and Ayeyarwaddy. A key factor behind the effectiveness of this response in these difficult times is the engagement of local civil society and labour organisations in the management and implementation before and during the crisis. With local organisations’ ability to mobilise quickly, their high level of personal commitment and their extensive local knowledge, these organisations have formed the backbone of LIFT’s support to migrants in border areas, communities of origin and communities of destination.
Our local CSO partners have also supported internal migrants through the provision of shelter and food and financial support to women in crisis, particularly the garment workers who have lost their jobs due to widespread factory closures in Yangon. LIFT-funded CSOs have also provided legal assistance to migrant workers to claim compensation for terminated employment and resolve labour disputes, both of which have increased dramatically during the pandemic, they supported community-level quarantine facilities and raising of awareness in Yangon’s Hlaing Thar Yar Township..."
Source/publisher:
United Nations Office for Project Services (Denmark) via "Reliefweb" (New York)
Date of publication:
2020-06-10
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-10
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
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Sub-title:
The government’s struggle to increase testing capacity amid shortages of equipment and staff is beginning to pay off and will leave Myanmar much better prepared for future pandemics.
Description:
"On April 22, three container trucks carrying parts of a Swiss-made Cobas 6800 Analyser arrived at the National Health Laboratory in Yangon to much fanfare. Donated by a local company, AA Pharmaceutical, the machine was trumpeted as a gamechanger in Myanmar’s response to COVID-19, because it would enable a significant scaling-up of testing.
Previously the NHL had been conducting just a few hundred tests a day, up to a maximum daily capacity of around 300. From early May, the Ministry of Health and Sports said, it would be able to conduct an additional 1,400 tests a day with the Cobas analyser.
Further steps were soon taken to boost testing capacity. The Department of Medical Research also began conducting COVID-19 tests on April 23, and the ministry revealed plans to establish new laboratories outside Yangon. Meanwhile, a few days after the donated machine arrived at the NHL, the military announced it had two more of the Cobas machines available, and offered to use them to test samples from civilians.
Yet, in spite of these initiatives, testing barely increased for almost a month. Only since mid-May has the number of tests regularly hit 500 a day. By June 9, only 38,123 tests had been performed overall in a country of 54 million. Support independent journalism in Myanmar. Sign up to be a Frontier member.
The slow scale-up of testing suggests there is no silver bullet. A range of factors need to be in place to test on a wide scale – not just the machines to perform the tests, but also testing kits, chemical reagents, human resources, supply chains and policies..."
Source/publisher:
"Frontier Myanmar" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-06-10
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-10
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
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Description:
"The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases has reached 240 so far, with four new cases on Saturday night, according to figures released by the Health and Sports Ministry.
Four people who were under quarantine after their recent arrival from India tested positive.
It was learnt that the newly confirmed cases were from Yangon and Nay Pyi Taw.
A total of 35,432 samples have been tested as of Saturday, since the disease was first detected in Myanmar on March 23.
According to the ministry's release, a total of 156 patients have recovered with six deaths so far..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-06-06
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-07
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Description:
"A total of 663 hotels, about one-third of the hotels in Myanmar, reopened across regions and states so far after temporary suspension due to the COVID-19 pandemic, an official from the Hotels and Tourism Ministry told Xinhua late Thursday.
"There are 2,053 hotels operating in the country and one-third of them have reopened after getting health and safety inspection passes by the authorities concerned as of May 29," said Deputy Director General U Aung Aye Han of the ministry.
As of May 29, Yangon region topped the list with 284 re-operating hotels, followed by Shan state with 94 hotels while hotels in Mandalay region, Chin and Kachin states have not been reopened.
Putting health in first place, the ministry has been exerting efforts for tourism development and for the convenience of the travellers in the country, the official said.
Meanwhile, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, tourist arrivals in Myanmar had dropped by 45 percent in the first four months of this year, compared to the corresponding period of last year, U Hlaing Oo, deputy permanent secretary of the ministry told Xinhua recently.
As part of measures to curb the spread of COVID-19, the Foreign Affairs Ministry also extended temporary entry restrictions for travellers from all countries until June 15..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-06-05
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-05
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Description:
"A total of 14 frontline health workers have been infected with COVID-19 so far since the disease was first detected in March in Myanmar, a health official told Xinhua on Thursday.
Of them, six health personnel are working under the Ministry of Health and Sports and the rest are health care professionals from private clinics.
"Health care personnel are at the frontlines in fight against COVID-19. The ministry has been providing physical and mental support to them," Than Naing Soe, director of Health Literacy Promotion Unit of the Public Health Department under the ministry, told Xinhua.
All of those infected health care workers are in good condition and some of them have recovered, he said.
Myanmar reported first two confirmed cases of COVID-19 on March 23 and the total number of infections has reached 234 as of Thursday morning.
In over two-month period, 145 patients have recovered and six deaths were reported so far, according to the ministry..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-06-04
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-04
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Sub-title:
A tangle of contrasting measures in different states and regions for quarantining visitors has left would-be travellers unsure whether or not to pack their bags.
Description:
"As local authorities across Myanmar gradually ease measures to limit the spread of COVID-19, the prospect of travelling freely around most of the country is inching closer.
But varied approaches from states and regions have created an incohesive picture for travellers, who face everything from zero requirements to a 21-day quarantine in a government facility and a mandatory health certificate, depending on the area.
Anyone entering Myanmar from abroad must still undergo facility quarantine.
The Union government has recommended local authorities to roll back quarantine restrictions for domestic travellers, but has ultimately devolved the decision, said Ministry of Health and Sports spokesperson Dr Than Naing Soe.
Support independent journalism in Myanmar. Sign up to be a Frontier member.
“Most states and regions are reducing their measures for quarantine,” he said. Than Naing Soe added that the only townships that are still subject to community lockdowns are Yangon’s COVID-19 hotspots, Insein and Mayangone. Residents of these two townships can expect to be quarantined in states and regions that have otherwise lifted quarantine requirements.
With 183 of Myanmar’s 233 confirmed COVID-19 cases, Yangon Region has been recognised by other regions and states as the epicentre of the virus, while Yangon itself has no quarantine requirements for domestic travellers.
Quarantine is not required for people who enter Mandalay Region, even if the township has recorded cases, said regional Shan ethnic affairs minister Sai Pan Saing. However, people travelling from townships under a community lockdown – Insein and Mayangone – will be quarantined for 21 days in a government facility, he said.
“We will check carefully to see where they are coming from before they enter the region,” Pan Saing told Frontier..."
Source/publisher:
"Frontier Myanmar" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-06-04
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-04
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"The total number of COVID-19 cases in Myanmar has risen to 232, with four more confirmed cases reported on Tuesday, according to a release from the Ministry of Health and Sports.
Of the newly confirmed cases, two patients are from Shan state and one each from Yangon region and Chin state, the release said.
According to the release, all patients were not in close contact with previously confirmed patients, but three of them were under quarantine as they had travel history in the past 14 days.
According to the ministry, 143 patients have recovered from the disease so far.
Myanmar has reported six deaths from COVID-19 as of Tuesday..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-06-02
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-03
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"From boiled catfish soup to spicy fried frog, an eight-year-old in pyjamas and a chef’s hat is delighting Myanmar with her culinary prowess in a nation still being told to stay at home due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Moe Myint May Thu’s mother posted a video online at the end of April showing off her daughter’s skills as the youngster threw together some spicy fried prawns.
With her wide gap-toothed grin, the video has bounced across social media and brought stardom to the child along with an online moniker: “Little Chef”.
She now sells dishes to order – and is counting the dividends.
“I just love cooking,” she said, during a break from the kitchen in her family’s Yangon flat.
“It’s made us happy cooking together in the lockdown,” she said, adding she wants to translate her childhood passion into a career when she grows up. In her most popular video, which has nearly 200,000 views, the young star wears a unicorn-themed T-shirt as she gives instructions on how to make Myanmar breakfast favourite Mohingya, concocted with boiled catfish..."
Source/publisher:
"Agence France-Presse" via "South China Morning Post" (Hong Kong)
Date of publication:
2020-06-02
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-02
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Sub-title:
The Central Committee on Prevention, Control and Treatment on COVID-19 issued a statement on May 28 relating to health measures to be taken for foreigners coming into Myanmar.
Description:
"Foreigners will have to stay a total of 21-day quarantine, a one week home quarantine in their respective country before flying, another one week facilitity quarantine after arriving in Myanmar and finally one more week of home quarantine in Myanmar,
Following a discussion on May 27, the central committee has also decided that foreign nationals travelling to Myanmar for professional purposes will need to show a certificate stating they are free from COVID-19 and have completed a week-long home quarantine in their country before flying. They will also be required to complete another week of facility quarantine upon arrival in Myanmar. They will only be allowed to work after completing another week-long home quarantine and their nasal swab sample returns a PCR-negative.
Those who are flying in to work on projects, business, construction and departmental matters will need to furnish laboratory evidence from their home countries showing that they are free of the COVID-19 infection. They will also need to provide evidence stating that they have completed one week of home quarantine before boarding the plane...."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-06-02
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-02
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
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Description:
"Myanmar Civil Society organizations and networks urge the Myanmar government and other relevant stakeholders to take urgent measures during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Programmes
Myanmar in Focus
28 May 2020
Myanmar is being affected by the COVID-19 global pandemic in many aspects – health wise, politically, economically and socially. The impact of the pandemic may be prolonged. In this regards, some Myanmar civil society organizations (CSOs) and networks convened online meetings on 29 April and 19 May 2020 to discuss ways to strategically respond to the pandemic. Based on these meetings, Myanmar CSOs plan to issue a manifesto on how to strategically coordinate and respond during the pandemic. While the manifesto is being prepared, which may take some time, there are some matters that require immediate actions.
Urgent recommendations and request:
1. Unconditionally stop armed conflict in all areas across Myanmar.
2. The Myanmar government should urgently support and provide humanitarian assistance to internally displaced persons (IDPs) and recent conflict affected population, especially in northern Rakhine and southern Chin States, and COVID-19 related response. Unconditionally remove all restrictions preventing CSOs from providing emergency assistance and humanitarian access must be granted.
3. Myanmar government, the military (Tatmadaw), and ethnic armed organisations (EAOs) should protect civilians in armed conflict affected areas and respect and fulfil international humanitarian law and international human rights law.
4. The government should buy goods with low shelf-lives from farmers and distribute them to people in need.
5. Agricultural loans repayment exemption from the government for farmers from armed conflict affected areas and suspend repayment of loans for farmers from other areas.
6. Unconditionally suspend land registration and land confiscation under the Vacant, Fallow, and Virgin (VFV) Land Management Law and the planning and implementation of business investments using Myanmar’s natural resources such as water, land and ecosystem during the COVID-19 pandemic when there are limitations on monitoring due to restrictions on people gatherings.
7. Temporarily suspend mineral mining, issuing licenses for mining, exploration, dam construction projects, hydropower projects and energy related projects that are detrimental to the environment and local communities since the public cannot gather to respond during the pandemic.
8. Immediately lift internet restrictions, which have been imposed supposedly due to armed conflict in Rakhine and Chin states and security reasons, limiting the public’s ability to access information, unblock ethnic websites and allow the media to freely access information and report. Media workers should not be charged under criminal laws or other repressive laws.
9. Provide unconditional food, money, and essential items support within a month to people are really poor and in dire need. Conduct a Rapid Needs Assessment to be able to provide such assistance. Government departments and CSOs should cooperate for the assessment..."
Source/publisher:
"TNI"
Date of publication:
2020-06-01
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-02
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"The UN in Myanmar has come together as one to support COVID-19 preparedness and response. The next in a series of articles highlights the contribution of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).
UNFPA initiatives in response to COVID-19 is aimed at supporting government and non-government partners towards ensuring continuity of sexual and reproductive health services, ending gender-based violence and ensuring psychological wellbeing of women, girls and young people amid COVID-19 pandemic.
COVID-19 strains public health systems including sexual and reproductive health services for women and girls and increases their vulnerability to gender-based violence (GBV) and exploitation. UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, is closely working with the Government, UN agencies, CSOs and humanitarian partners to keep health systems functioning and maintain the provision of sexual and reproductive health services and to ensure availability of and accessibility to critical GBV and mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) services during COVID-19.
Strengthening health systems; ensuring availability and accessibility of quality sexual and reproductive health services
UNFPA support to Ministry of Health and Sports and non-government partners is aimed at strengthening health systems and ensuring availability and accessibility of quality sexual and reproductive health services in any kind of emergency context, including COVID-19 pandemic. To protect frontline health workers from the risk of infection, UNFPA has procured personal protective equipment (PPE) for state and region health departments. UNFPA is also engaged in making available PPE to midwives and other health workers who are at the frontline in providing sexual and reproductive health services to women and girls, particularly in vulnerable communities..."
Source/publisher:
UNFPA via "Reliefweb" (New York)
Date of publication:
2020-06-02
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-02
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Description:
"Myanmar government has ordered all staff to return to work as usual starting next month, a government official told press briefing on Saturday.
"Due to COVID-19 outbreak, the government ordered half of the staff to stay at home in recent months," said Zaw Htay, spokesperson of the President's Office.
The offices must follow the health measures issued by the Ministry of Health and Sports, he said.
Meanwhile, basic education schools will be reopened in mid-July in the country.
"High schools will be prioritized and the middle and elementary schools will be reopened later," he said.
Myanmar has reported 224 confirmed COVID-19 cases with six deaths so far in the country..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-05-31
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-01
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"People wearing masks and face shields walk in downtown Yangon, Myanmar, June 1, 2020. The total number of COVID-19 cases in Myanmar has risen to 228, with four more confirmed cases reported on Monday, according to a release from the Ministry of Health and Sports..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-06-01
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-01
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
" From boiled catfish soup to spicy fried frog, an eight-year-old in pyjamas and a chef's hat is delighting Myanmar with her culinary prowess in a nation still being told to stay at home due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Moe Myint May Thu's mother posted a video online at the end of April showing off her daughter's skills as the youngster threw together some spicy fried prawns. With her wide gap-toothed grin, the video has bounced across social media and brought stardom to the child along with an online moniker: "Little Chef".
She now sells dishes to order - and is counting the dividends.
"I just love cooking," she tells AFP, during a break from the kitchen in her family's Yangon flat. "It's made us happy cooking together in the lockdown," she says, adding she wants to translate her childhood passion into a career when she grows up. In her most popular video, which has nearly 200,000 views, the young star wears a unicorn-themed T-shirt as she gives instructions on how to make Myanmar breakfast favourite Mohingya, concocted with boiled catfish.
Moe Myint May Thu has mastered 15 dishes, including tomato fish paste curry, pork stew and spicy fried frog.
Each meal sells for a flat-rate of 10,000 kyat (US$7.20) and is delivered by the family at the end of each day, the whole operation under the guidance of the experienced hands of her social influencer mum, Honey Cho.
The business venture is clearly paying off..."
Source/publisher:
"CNA" ( Singapore)
Date of publication:
2020-06-01
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-01
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Description:
"The following are the updates on the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.
- - - -
YANGON -- Myanmar's Foreign Affairs Ministry Monday announced extension of temporary entry restrictions for travellers from all countries until June 15, as part of measures to contain the spread of COVID-19 outbreak.
The extension will be effective to the ministry's announcements of precautionary measures for the travellers which were set to be in force until May 31.
- - - -
THE HAGUE -- The Netherlands reopened restaurants, cafes, theaters, concert halls, museums and cinemas on Monday after two and a half months' COVID-19 lockdown.
According to the rules, a maximum of 30 people are allowed in restaurants, cafes, theaters, concert halls and cinemas, as long as the 1.5-meter social distancing rules can be kept. A maximum of two people who are not from the same household can sit together at one table.
- - - -
LUSAKA -- Zambia reported 32 new COVID-19 cases in the last five days, bringing the cumulative cases to 1,089, health authorities said on Monday.
The country conducted 3,961 tests in the last five days from which the 32 cases were picked from.
- - - -
KATHMANDU -- With the confirmation of 226 new cases on Monday, Nepal has seen the highest single day spike of COVID-19 cases, and the total tally has surged to 1,798.
According to the Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP), 213 males and 13 females tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-06-01
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-01
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Description:
"Myanmar's Foreign Affairs Ministry Monday announced extension of temporary entry restrictions for travellers from all countries until June 15, as part of measures to contain the spread of COVID-19 outbreak.
The extension will be effective to the ministry's announcements of precautionary measures for the travellers which were set to be in force until May 31.
Complying with the restrictions, all incoming travelers including Myanmar nationals and all diplomats accredited to Myanmar and the United Nations officials working in Myanmar must follow the existing directives issued by the Ministry of Health and Sports on their arrival in Myanmar.
Also, the suspension period of all types of visas including social visit visas and visa exemption services has been extended to June 15, the ministry's announcement said. Myanmar has reported 228 confirmed COVID-19 cases with six deaths so far since the infectious disease was first detected in the country on March 23..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-06-01
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-01
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Description:
"• After relatively a low rate of cases, 17 new cases were confirmed on 30 May alone, bringing the total to 228 cases, six fatalities and 138 recoveries across the country. Two cases were confirmed in Rakhine State, while no cases have been confirmed in camps or sites for internally displaced people (IDP) or in communities affected by the conflict.
• Return of migrants from bordering areas continues. More than 80,000 migrants returned since March, according to initial estimates by IOM.
• New academic year to resume mid-July, with many government schools used as quarantine facilities to be vacated and prepared for classes.
• Myanmar Government states that repatriation of Rohingya is likely to be delayed after the first COVID-19 case in the refugee camp in Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar.
• COVID-19 preparedness and response efforts continue by government, ethnic health organizations and humanitarian partners across all conflict-affected areas and in quarantine facilities for returning migrants.
• A total of US$47.6 million has been contributed to the 2020 Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP), including $11.8 million to the HRP COVID-19 Addendum (18 per cent funding of revised total requirement of $262.3 million) – FTS
• Union Parliament agrees to seek US$700 million loan from the International Monetary Fund for COVID-19 response..."
Source/publisher:
OCHA (New York) via Reliefweb (New York)
Date of publication:
2020-06-01
Date of entry/update:
2020-06-01
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Sub-title:
Facing high infection risk, many have moved to temporary dwellings to keep loved ones safe
Description:
"Dr Wunna is terrified of infecting his frail mother with the novel coronavirus.
The 33-year-old assistant surgeon, who works at Yangon General Hospital’s emergency department, would like to move out until it’s safe to see her again.
But he comes home after every shift because she has coronary heart disease, and he doesn’t want her to be alone if she has a heart attack. That same disease, though, is the very thing that makes her so vulnerable if she catches the virus.
Knowing that his job puts him at a higher risk of getting the virus, and that he might spread it to his mother even if he doesn't have symptoms, is causing him constant stress.
“It’s suffocating,” he told Myanmar Now at the end of a busy shift. “How long is this going to last?”
When he gets home from work each day he takes his shoes off outside, disinfects them and leaves them there. Then he immediately washes all of his clothes. He keeps as much distance as possible from his mother in their shared apartment and they no longer eat at the same table.
Dr Wunna is among hundreds of frontline health workers in hospitals dealing with Covid-19 patients whose family lives have been upended since the crisis began.
Many have left their homes to stay in government-provided apartments, and haven’t seen their partners, children and parents for weeks for fear of giving them the virus.
So far, a doctor, an anaesthetist, and three nurses at public hospitals have tested positive for the virus in Myanmar. More than 100 other public healthcare workers who were in close contact with them are still under quarantine..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Now" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-04-29
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-31
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Sub-title:
Country records 37 imported cases in less than two weeks
Description:
"Myanmar reported a surge in COVID-19 cases Saturday, bringing its tally to 224.
Of the total, six have died and 130 made full recoveries, according to health ministry.
The ministry of health and sports announced late Friday that 17 people who were under a 21-day quarantine after returning from India, tested positive of COVID-19.
Despite no local transmission since May 18, the country has reported 37 imported cases in less than two weeks as thousands of Myanmars returned home under the government’s plan to rescue nationals stranded abroad.
The government said 2,596 nationals have been brought back..."
Source/publisher:
"Anadolu Agency" (Ankara)
Date of publication:
2020-05-30
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-30
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
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Sub-title:
The health ministry reported 17 new COVID-19 cases on May 30 involving returning migrants from India. This comes after the government extended an international commercial flight ban to June 15 to slow down the spread of the disease.
Description:
"The ministry said 15 of the new COVID-19 patients were residents of Yangon and two others were residents of Mandalay. The new patients were undergoing the mandatory 21-day facility quarantine when they tested positive for the virus.
All the new COVID-19 cases reported in the country during the past two weeks were imported, involving citizens returning from abroad, health ministry data showed. On May 29, The Department of Civil Aviation notified all international airlines about the extension of a ban on commercial flights to Myanmar until June 15.
The ban on international commercial flights was first imposed on March 29 as part of measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Thousands of Myanmar migrants who lost their jobs abroad due to the coronavirus are now returning to the country.
The Foreign Affairs ministry earlier announced the government has prepared quarantine facilities across the country that can accommodate up to 100,000 people.
The government is relying on strict quarantining and swift contact tracing to control the virus, which was first detected in the country on March 23.
From January 31 to May 29 at 8 pm, Myanmar has been able to test 23,951 people for the disease, according to data from the health ministry.
So far, Myanmar has reported 224 confirmed cases, including six deaths and 130 recoveries..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-05-30
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-30
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Description:
"YANGON: Some domestic airlines in the country will be resuming operations by the end of this month.
Reports in the Myanmar Times said Air Thanlwin, which was temporarily suspended in April to curb the spread of Covid-19, would resume operations tomorrow.
The airline will resume flights with routes based in Yangon and Mandalay flying to Sittwe, Tachileik, Myitkyina, Kengtung, Heho and Hkamti.
Myanmar National Airlines and Air KBZ had resumed domestic flights since early May.
Golden Myanmar Airlines, which suspended operations until May 15, resumed domestic flights the next day on May 16, to some destinations flown by majority of travellers.
Mann Yadanarpon Airlines restarted its domestic flights on May 22, but only between Yangon and Sittwe.
Currently, Myanmar has suspended international flights until the end of May, and domestic flights have been reduced depending on the availability of passengers.
The Civil Aviation Department extended a ban on international commercial air traffic until the end of this month on May 14 to curb the spread of Covid-19.
Some international airlines flying to Myanmar have announced plans to resume some flights in early June.
The ban, first introduced on March 30 and extended by decrees since then, was extended from May 15 to May 31, according to a memo to airlines from the Civil Aviation Department and signed by its director-general, U Aung Kyaw Tun..."
Source/publisher:
"New Straits Times" (Malaysia)
Date of publication:
2020-05-29
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-29
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Sub-title:
Some political parties have begun preparing for the general elections as the government cautiously eases restrictions meant to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Description:
"Party officials said that while they cannot yet go all out in their campaigning because of the ban on mass gatherings, they are acting within the limits.
“The preparations have begun,” said U Aung Moe Kyaw, chair of the New Democratic Party. “But the situation is still very difficult.” Shan Nationalities Party joint secretary U Sai Kyaw Nyunt said that if COVID-19 continues to hamper preparations for the polls it may have to change tactics to reach out to voters. “We might have to organise online party offices,” he said.
He added that while they have not yet selected their official candidates, the selection criteria have been drafted and are ready to implement.
However, the country’s two biggest parties – the National League for Democracy and the Union Solidarity and Development Party – refused to discuss their preparations for the polls.
Some parties have opted to postpone their preparations until the Union Election Commission (UEC) announces the election date.
Daw Aye Nu Sein, spokesperson for the Arakan National Party, which controls the Rakhine State parliament, said it is difficult to start preparations because, even without the threat of COVID-19, there is the uncertainty caused by the fighting between the Arakan Army and Tatmadaw (military).
“There is the war, and there are issues with COVID 19, so we have not started yet,” she said.
A senior election official has said that despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the election would likely be held in November, the same as the elections in 2010 and 2015..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-05-29
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-29
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Description:
"As COVID-19 continues to evolve in Myanmar, United Nations agencies, funds and programmes are supporting the efforts of the Government of Myanmar and communities to prevent and respond to the pandemic.
Since the early days of the outbreak, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has been working closely with the Government to provide direct assistance. In recent weeks, more than 8,700 bottles of hand gel and 260 temperature screeners were handed over to the Union Parliaments, the Myanmar Anti-Corruption Commission, the Union Civil Service Board, the Union Attorney General’s Office, the Office of the Supreme Court of the Union, the Myanmar National Human Rights Commission and other counterparts. Similar assistance was also provided to local communities in collaboration with 12 CSOs in Kachin and Rakhine states. To assist community awareness building, about 100 loudspeakers are also being provided to the Department of Disaster Management. Further, UNDP will be assisting nine state and regional governments in strengthening health support through providing personal protection equipment (PPE) and other necessary medical supplies, with the first batch of PPEs due to be handed over in the next two weeks.
UNDP continues to enhance the capacities of mational institutions to operate effectively during the COVID-19 pandemic. Through its Support to Effective and Responsive Institutions Project (SERIP), UNDP organized a webinar for Union Hluttaw MPs, on the topic of the COVID-19 Economic Relief Plan (CERP) and the role of MPs with regard to this important national plan. UNDP’s project on Strengthening Accountability and Rule of Law (SARL) is providing video conferencing equipment to the Myanmar Anti-Corruption Commission and the Myanmar National Human Rights Commission. This support will allow enhanced coordination and timely provision of services to general public. It will have a positive impact on the operations and activities of the Government institutions and CSOs to allow staff to continue ongoing coordination work while observing physical distancing measures.
Earlier in April, UNDP collaborated with relevant Government entities at union and state levels to prepare and submit loan applications to the COVID-19 Fund set up by the Government of Myanmar. A fund of 100 billion Myanmar kyats was set up to provide immediate loans to enterprises in the socio-economic sector impacted by the COVID-19. UNDP facilitated over 180 applications to this fund..."
Source/publisher:
OCHA, UNDP, UNIC via "Reliefweb" (New York)
Date of publication:
2020-05-29
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-29
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Description:
"The World Health Organization (WHO) should press four governments that have shut down the internet to minority populations during the Covid-19 crisis to restore internet access, Human Rights Watch and 47 other organizations said.
As part of the KeepItOn Coalition, the group asked WHO Director-General Dr. Zsuzsanna Jakab to urge the governments of Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, and Pakistan to restore full access to the internet.
The group called on WHO’s Dr. Jakab to urge the governments of India, Myanmar, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and any other that shuts down the internet, to restore access to the internet in these regions to enable marginalized communities to enjoy their fundamental right of access to information, a core obligation of states and necessary to achieving the highest attainable standard of health.
It also asked to publicly denounce the use of internet shutdowns as a hindrance to the WHO mission and an acute threat to public health, and encourage governments to recognize the important role of the internet in times of crises.
It further urge to continue to prioritize efforts to increase access to reliable information and encourage active cooperation on the part of the public, by providing the latest news and information on COVID-19, in order to improve the health of all people.
#KeepItOn coalition, is a global network that unites more than 210 organizations from 75 countries that work to end internet shutdowns globally through grassroots advocacy..."
Source/publisher:
"The News International" (Pakistan)
Date of publication:
2020-05-29
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-29
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Description:
"The restriction of sit-in dining at the eateries across Myanmar during the COVID-19 pandemic have let food delivery services ride the waves since a couple of months ago.
Khin Min Shin is one of the risk-takers who want to challenge things in life while making a living.
It has been more than three weeks since Khin joined the riders' team of the foodpanda, an international food delivery chain, the first step of her into the world of unsung heroes for the food lovers of Yangon.
Almost the whole day riding on her bike does not make Khin worried about being infected by the virus. "I'm not afraid of being infected, but afraid of bringing the virus home and get my family infected. So, I'm taking a good care of personal hygiene," Khin told Xinhua.
Although some delivery companies have introduced contactless payment system, the system has not been broadly used by the customers and most customers are still relying on a cash-on-delivery system in the country.
"I try my utmost to follow health measures like physical distancing or using hand sanitizer while delivering meals to the customers," Khin said.
The couriers like Khin have been boosting their energy to work hard in pursuit of prosperous life by staying strong against the crisis which the country is facing.
Khin Min Shin rides 14 to 17 routes daily depending on the orders made by the stay-at-home yangonites.
Taking a break from her trainee life at one of the upscale hotel chains in Yangon, Khin, 20, debuted as a female delivery rider earlier this month, inspired by her aunts who are also running some small delivery services.
"Extent of exhaustion is, of course, different if I have to compare my current rider life and pervious job. But, riding a bike isn't unfamiliar with me and that's what I love to do," Khin recounted her previous hotel staff life with riding a bike to and from her workplace..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-05-28
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-28
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
" Myanmar's Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population has provided social security benefits to a total of 26,305 workers of factories, workshops and workplaces affected by the restrictions against COVID-19 pandemic, said a ministry's release on Tuesday.
"During the period of COVID-19 crisis, some factories and workshops had to shut down due to their own difficulties while some had to temporarily close for inspections by the authorities as part of health measures. We are doing this to show support to them," U Myo Aung, permanent secretary of the ministry, told Xinhua.
As part of a move to contain the spread of COVID-19, all local factories had to close from April 20 to May 15 for mandatory inspections by the ministry concerned.
Workers from those factories who registered for social security under the Social Welfare Program will receive 40 percent of their salaries for the unemployed days in accordance with the Social Security Law, the ministry's release said.
Meanwhile, Myanmar authorities offered employment to over 9,300 local people in regions and states in April, down from over 24,000 in March due to the COVID-19 crisis, the ministry's figures said.
The ministry also announced suspension of sending migrant workers abroad and the issuance of employment contracts and overseas employment identity cards last month, as part of COVID-19 containment measures..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-05-26
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-27
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Title: Over 2,300 Myanmar nationals brought home by relief flights amid COVID-19 travel restrictions
Description:
" A total of 2,326 Myanmar nationals who were stranded in foreign countries due to the suspension of international commercial flights amid COVID-19 outbreak have been brought back home by relief flights so far, according to the Foreign Affairs Ministry on Monday.
"More Myanmar nationals from Thailand, Singapore, India and Korea will arrive soon this month," an official from the Consular and Legal Affairs Department under the ministry told Xinhua.
Plans are underway to bring more nationals back home from other foreign countries, the official said.
All returnees have to stay under quarantine at designated facilities or hotels in Yangon region for 21 days upon arrival.
According to the Health and Sports Ministry, Myanmar has reported 201 COVID-19 cases with six deaths as of Monday morning..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-05-25
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-27
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Sub-title:
Even as factories close and many people stay home, air pollution in Yangon has remained stubbornly bad, and the agriculture sector may hold the answer.
Description:
"It has been described as a silver lining of COVID-19 – albeit one that is likely to be temporary.
Stay-at-home orders and factory closures due to pandemic have resulted in vast improvements to air quality in many of the world’s largest cities, including Wuhan in China, where the pandemic originated late last year. The Finland-based Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air has even estimated that declines in air pollutants may have prevented 11,000 deaths across Europe.
But in Yangon, there has been much less change to air pollution levels in recent months. At times, the city has had among the worst air quality in the world, according to monitoring sources such as Air Quality Index and PurpleAir.
The main sources of the particulate matter that contribute to air pollution in Yangon include vehicles, factories, generators, smoke from cooking fires – especially those using charcoal – and the burning of rubbish.
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As in other cities, though, social distancing and other precautions to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in Yangon mean that fewer people are travelling to work, leading to much less traffic on the roads, and many factories have closed. The stubbornly poor air quality readings suggest that these are not the key causes of poor air quality, at least during the March to May hot season.
Air Quality Yangon, managed by a group of students from American University Yangon, is a platform that aims to create awareness about air pollution in Yangon, mainly on social media. Each day it posts two updates to Facebook using data collected from air quality sensors installed at different sites throughout the city, and information reported from a reference grade monitor at the United States embassy..."
Source/publisher:
"Frontier Myanmar" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-05-25
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-26
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"Faced with the threat of a coronavirus pandemic which could have devastating effects in a country with poor health infrastructure, Myanmar’s government and many ethnic armed organisations have taken steps to put aside their ongoing conflict to fight a common enemy.
Myanmar has so far tested more than 17,000 people for Covid-19 and identified 199 confirmed cases out of a population of 54 million. Along the country’s northeastern border with China, the Kachin Independence Organisation (KIO), one of dozens of organisations which have been engaged in on-off conflict with the Myanmar military (Tatmadaw) for decades, started making preparations against the coronavirus in February. It established a Covid-19 prevention committee, started importing test kits from Singapore and China, initiated social distancing policies and public health campaigns, and built handwashing stations and quarantine facilities.
No cases have yet been reported in KIO-controlled areas but if they arise, patients will be sent to the KIO hospital in its headquarters of Laiza, which has 50 ICU beds and 10 ventilators.
The KIO and Myanmar officials had no formal communication relating to Covid-19 response planning until April 27, when the government announced a committee to engage with certain ethnic armed organisations including the KIO to fight the pandemic..."
Source/publisher:
"South China Morning Post" (Hong Kong)
Date of publication:
2020-05-24
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-25
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health, China-Burma relations
more
Description:
"The number of COVID-19 confirmed cases reached 201 with more than half of the patients having recovered as of Saturday morning, according to figures from the Health and Sports Ministry.
Two returnees in Chin state, who were under quarantine after their recent arrival from Malaysia, tested positive on Saturday.
Myanmar reported its first two confirmed cases of the disease on March 23.
A total of 17,875 samples have been tested in the country. Of the total confirmed patients, 116 have recovered and six deaths have been recorded, according to the ministry's figures.
"We found that 61 percent of the confirmed patients are asymptomatic, which is quite worrisome. At present, we can say that the situation in our country is under control and the health authorities are trying their utmost in contact tracing and in cutting chains of transmission," Director Than Naing Soe of Health Knowledge Promotion Division under the ministry, told Xinhua.
With accelerating efforts, everyone needs to continue joining hands in long-term COVID-19 battle, the director said.
Regionally, Yangon region registered the most COVID-19 cases of 156, while no case has been detected in Kayah state.
Union Minister Dr. Myint Htwe for Health and Sports told a recent parliamentary meeting that the testing capacity of COVID-19 will be boosted starting next month.
At present, the samples are being tested at laboratories in Yangon..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-05-23
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-24
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Sub-title:
Deadly and disruptive as it already is, and terribly as it could yet worsen and spread, the 2020 coronavirus outbreak could also have political effects that last long after the contagion is contained. Crisis Group identifies seven points of particular concern.
Description:
"Overview:
The COVID-19 pandemic unquestionably presents an era-defining challenge to public health and the global economy. Its political consequences, both short- and long-term, are less well understood.
The global outbreak has the potential to wreak havoc in fragile states, trigger widespread unrest and severely test international crisis management systems. Its implications are especially serious for those caught in the midst of conflict if, as seems likely, the disease disrupts humanitarian aid flows, limits peace operations and postpones or distracts conflict parties from nascent as well as ongoing efforts at diplomacy. Unscrupulous leaders may exploit the pandemic to advance their objectives in ways that exacerbate domestic or international crises – cracking down on dissent at home or escalating conflicts with rival states – on the assumption that they will get away with it while the world is otherwise occupied. COVID-19 has fuelled geopolitical friction, with the U.S. blaming China for the disease while Beijing tries to win friends by offering aid to affected countries, exacerbating existing great-power tensions that complicate cooperation on crisis management.
It is not yet clear when and where the virus will hit hardest, and how economic, social and political factors may converge to spark or aggravate crises. Nor is it guaranteed that the pandemic’s consequences will be entirely or uniformly negative for peace and security. Natural disasters have sometimes resulted in the diminution of conflicts, as rival parties have had to work together, or at least maintain calm, to focus on preserving and rebuilding their societies. There have been a few signs of governments trying to ease political tensions in the shadow of COVID-19 with, for example, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Kuwait offering Iran – centre of one of the worst initial outbreaks outside China – humanitarian assistance. If the pandemic is likely to worsen some crises internationally, it may also create windows to improve others..."
Source/publisher:
"International Crisis Group (ICG)" (Belgium)
Date of publication:
2020-03-24
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-21
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"This page includes information and guidance from the Ministry of Health and Sports (MoHS) and the World Health Organization (WHO) regarding the current outbreak of Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) Pandemic that was first reported from Wuhan, China, on 31 December 2019..."
Source/publisher:
Myanmar Information Management Unit (MIMU) (Yangon)
Date of publication:
2020-05-19
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-19
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"၁။ အမျိုးသားကျန်းမာရေးဓာတ်ခွဲမှုဆိုင်ရာဌာန (ရန်ကုန်) (NHL) မှ ဒုတိယအသုတ်အဖြစ် ဓာတ်ခွဲနမူနာ (၂၃၉) ခုအား (၁၈-၅-၂၀၂၀) ရက်နေ့ ညပိုင်းတွင် စစ်ဆေးပြီးစီးခဲ့ရာ -
• COVID-19 ရောဂါ ဓာတ်ခွဲအတည်ပြု လူနာသစ် (၃) ဦးတွေ့ရှိရပါသည်။
၂။ (၁၉-၅-၂၀၂၀) ရက်နေ့၊ နံနက် (၇:၀၀)နာရီအထိ မြန်မာနိုင်ငံတွင် COVID-19 ရောဂါ ဓာတ်ခွဲ အတည်ပြုလူနာ (၁၉၁) ဦးရှိပြီဖြစ်ပါသည်။
၃။ ဓာတ်ခွဲအတည်ပြု လူနာဟောင်းများတွင် ရောဂါပိုးကင်းစင်လာသူ စုစုပေါင်း (၁၀၁)ဦး ရှိပါသည်။
၄။ ဓာတ်ခွဲအတည်ပြုလူနာများအနက် သေဆုံးသူ (၆)ဦး ရှိပါသည်။
၅။ (၁၈-၅-၂၀၂၀) ရက်နေ့တွင် ဆေးသုတေသနဦးစီးဌာန (DMR) မှ ဓာတ်ခွဲနမူနာ (၁၇၀) ခုနှင့် အမျိုးသားကျန်းမာရေးဓာတ်ခွဲမှုဆိုင်ရာဌာန (ရန်ကုန်) (NHL) မှ ဓာတ်ခွဲနမူနာ (၄၂၇) ခု၊ စုစုပေါင်း (၅၉၇) ခုအား စစ်ဆေးခဲ့ပါသည်။..."
Source/publisher:
Ministry of Health and Sports (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-05-19
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-19
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
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Sub-title:
The first COVID-19 case has been found in Rakhine State at 8pm on May 18, according to the health ministry.
Description:
"Case-188 is a 35-year-old man who lives in Thandwe township in Rakhine State and a returnee from Malaysia. The man was tested positive while undergoing a facility quarantine in Thandwe. He has now been admitted to the Thandwe General hospital for treatment.
This marks the fifth case, starting with Case 184, where repatriates who returned to Myanmar after working in Malaysia have tested positive. The National Health Laboratory tested 188 persons and the Department of Medical Research in Yangon Region tested 170 persons suspected of being infected with the virus in the latest batch. Moreover, four more COVID-19 patients are on the road to recovery after recent tests showed no remaining signs of the virus.
The first and second patients, Case-36 and Case-48, who are on the road to recovery are from Insein and South Okkalapa townships in Yangon and both of them were infected while attending a religious ceremony in Insein. Their test results have returned negative twice.
The third and fourth patients on the road to recovery, Case-88 and Case-114, are both from Kalay township in Sagaing Region. They were infected Case-1, a US green card holder from Tedim township, Chin State.
From January 31 to May 18 at 8 pm, the government tested 14,561 people for the disease, the health ministry said..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-05-18
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-19
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health, Arakan (Rakhine) State - reports etc. by date (latest first)
Language:
more
Description:
"• 187 cases have been confirmed with six fatalities and 97 recoveries across the country, with a relatively low rate of new cases in the last two weeks(37 cases since 1 May). As of 18 May, there has been no confirmed case in camps or displacement sites for internally displaced people (IDP) or in communities affected by conflict.
• Around 80,000 migrants have returned since March, according to initial estimates by IOM, although the number is difficult to verify.
• WFP has launched weekly humanitarian relief flights between Kuala Lumpur and Yangon. Suspension of regular international flights will continue through 30 May.
• Myanmar Armed Forces announced unilateral ceasefire until end of August to coordinate COVID-19 response (excluding Rakhine and Chin states).
• COVID-19 response and preparedness coordination with ethnic armed organizations (EAOs) is ongoing in Kachin and Shan by Government Committee for Coordinating and Cooperating with EAOs for Prevention, Control and Treatment of COVID-19, including cooperation on border control measures and provision of government funding to support EAO-run quarantine center in Kachin..."
Source/publisher:
OCHA "New York) via "Reliefweb" (New York)
Date of publication:
2020-05-19
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-19
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
Format :
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Size:
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Description:
"The total number of COVID-19 cases in Myanmar has risen to 191, with three more confirmed cases reported on Tuesday, according to a release from the Ministry of Health and Sports.
The ministry also reported one confirmed case of COVID-19 late Monday.
Of the newly confirmed cases, the two patients are from Rakhine state while one each from Magway and Ayeyarwady regions, the release said.
According to the release, all patients were under quarantine as they had travelling history in the past 14 days.
According to the ministry's release, 101 patients have recovered from the disease so far.
Myanmar has reported six deaths of COVID-19 disease as of Tuesday since the infectious disease was first detected in the country on March 23..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-05-19
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-19
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Sub-title:
Despite ominous predictions, there are few signs of a disastrous spread of COVID-19, while the capacity to control and treat the disease is increasing with each day.
Description:
"When the World Health Organization issued its first COVID-19 situation report, on January 21, a total of 282 people had been infected by the virus, including 258 in Wuhan, China – the epicentre of the pandemic – and 24 in Thailand, South Korea and Japan.
Myanmar was not mentioned until the 64th WHO situation report, after the country’s first two confirmed cases were reported on March 23.
In the 56 days to May 17, Myanmar had reported 187 confirmed cases, six deaths, the recovery of 97 patients, and 84 active cases. Myanmar has had fewer confirmed cases than many other countries and, despite limited testing, the spread of the virus seems outwardly to be under control.
However, some observers, particularly form outside Myanmar, have not been optimistic about Myanmar’s capacity to control and contain COVID-19. They point to a range of vulnerabilities, including Myanmar’s long border with Chin"a, the 320,000 Chinese tourists who visited Myanmar last year, and the large numbers of people that cross Myanmar’s borders both informally and formally. Myanmar also has many over-crowded camps for people displaced by war, including in Rakhine and Kachin states, where armed conflict continues and the number of people in IDP camps continues to rise. Because of these factors, they cautioned, the virus could spread disastrously in Myanmar. They also said the relatively low number of infections that have been detected in Myanmar might simply be because of low testing capacity. But are the prospects for a COVID-19 outbreak as ominous as their grim predictions?...
Source/publisher:
"Frontier Myanmar" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-05-18
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-19
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
" စာသောက်ဆိုင်များ ပြန်လည်ဖွင့်လစ်ရာတွင် လိုက်နာဆောင်ရွက်ရမည့် အချက်များ..."
Source/publisher:
Ministry of Health and Sports (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-05-18
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-19
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
Format :
pdf
Size:
196.39 KB (4 pages)
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Sub-title:
The government ordered all schools used as quarantine facilities to be closed and returned to the Ministry of Education no later than June 16, in preparation for the beginning of the school year.
Description:
"The Union Government Office said the 6021 schools now used as quarantine facilities need to be disinfected before classes start in July.
"According to the letter, the schools will reopen on July 15,” said U Maung Win, deputy director of the Basic Education Department. “They might have given this instruction to get ready." On May 12, State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi said that schools cannot be closed permanently due to COVID-19. She also opposed internet-based teaching, saying that even in developed countries, online schools have a lot of problems. She ordered education officials to follow the COVID-19 prevention measures issued by the Health Ministry.
She urged education officials to also address overcrowding in schools, noting that students must maintain social distancing..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-05-18
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-18
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
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Description:
"Myanmar's Central Committee on Prevention, Control and Treatment of the COVID-19 will provide cash assistance to needy citizens as part of the COVID-19 economic relief plan, a government official told a press briefing on Saturday.
Negotiations are being carried out between the National-level committee led by State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and respective ministries to directly disburse cash to the people in need through online payment system, said Zaw Htay, spokesperson of the President's Office.
The cash assistance program, which is set to start in two or three weeks, is the second batch of the government's assistance for the needy citizens since the first batch of provision of basic essentials including rice, oil, salt, bean and onion to those struggling amid the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic last month.
Under the previous assistance, the government used 50.84 billion kyats (36.3 million U.S. dollars) from state fund to provide basic essentials to a total of 3.99 million households, the spokesperson said.
As of Saturday, Myanmar has reported 182 confirmed cases of the COVID-19 with six deaths, according to the figures from the Health and Sports Ministry..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-05-16
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-17
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Sub-title:
Working on prevention messaging with UN, partner communities and local health authorities
Description:
"As the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues to spread globally, developing countries with internally displaced populations, high labor migration, and weak health systems are especially vulnerable. In response to these challenges in Myanmar, the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) is collaborating with partners on the front line of prevention campaigns in Rakhine, Chin, and Kayin states.
With limited testing available in Myanmar and only one existing diagnostic lab in the country, there are fears that the pandemic may be spreading invisibly. LWF partner communities, including migrant source communities in border areas and camps for internally displaced populations (IDPs) are especially at risk.
LWF is working in the field with over 220 partner communities, including IDP camps, and is collaborating closely with state, township, and local authorities to respond quickly and compassionately to the pandemic. This includes reallocating resources in response to requests from partner communities and health authorities.
In remote Chin State, LWF has assisted the Mindat Department of Health in educating the public about how to protect themselves and others. In addition, the health department has requested assistance in procuring necessary medical equipment and supplies.
Kayin State is facing an influx of migrant workers from neighboring Thailand, and many returning to communities in Hlaingbwe and Kyainseikgyi townships lack basic knowledge about the disease, while also downplaying the importance of self-quarantine. Hence, LWF is working with health authorities to disseminate local-language information, encouraging communities to take simple preventative measures. The authorities have also requested assistance with procuring medical equipment and supplies.
In Ann Township, Rakhine State, while raising awareness in partner communities, LWF is also meeting with the township health department for emergency preparation, community awareness, and procurement needs..."
Source/publisher:
Lutheran World Federation via "Reliefweb" (New York)
Date of publication:
2020-05-15
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-16
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Sub-title:
Food security concerns in Myanmar are looming as farmers are unable to start the new growing season due to COVID-19 disruptions.
Description:
"“Since COVID-19, there is no longer usual trading as crops simply don’t sell anymore,” said Ba Myint, a farmer in Taungup township in southern Rakhine State, where the primary crops are rice and beans.
The price of produce has crumbled, and at times there were no buyers even when the price was slashed by 75 percent, he told this newspaper. Ba Myint’s plight underscores the struggles farmers across the nation are now facing. Travel restrictions imposed to prevent the spread of COVID-19 have led to lower sales for farmers and resulted in significant losses for those who rely on loans. That has strangled their ability to plant this season, leading to a near collapse of Myanmar’s agricultural economy. The planting of monsoon rice - accounting for 80pc of Myanmar’s paddy crop production - typically begins in late April with harvests in September and October. But as government loans have paused and microfinancing institutions have suspended operations, many farmers have been unable to raise money to invest in this growing season.
Myanmar is now at risk of missing the entire season of production unless agricultural activities and access to finances resumes within the next two weeks. Worse, experts warn there could be a severe food shortage in six months if farmers are unable to start planting before the monsoon arrives..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-05-05
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-16
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
" Myanmar authorities have brought 1,847 nationals stranded in foreign countries back home as of Friday night, a senior official of the Foreign Affairs Ministry told Xinhua on Saturday.
"The fourth batch of Myanmar nationals in Singapore will arrive back today and arrangements are being carried out to repatriate more nationals from countries such as South Korea, Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Australia, the Philippines and India in the near future," said Director-General Aung Kyaw Zan of the Consular and Legal Affairs Department under the ministry.
Most recently, a total of 131 stranded nationals from South Korea, the United States, Britain, Italy, Qatar, Indonesia and Vietnam were brought back home by relief flights late Friday, according to the ministry's release.
The ministry has been working with Myanmar embassies in foreign countries and local ministries concerned to bring back citizens stranded abroad due to the suspension of international commercial flights, in accordance with the guidance of the National-Level Central Committee on Prevention, Control and Treatment of COVID-19, the release said.
Meanwhile, the ministry recently announced the further extension of the effective period of travel restrictions till the end of May, aiming to strengthen measures to contain the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-05-16
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-16
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"The Ministry of Health and Sport reported a new COVID-19 positive case in Myanmar on May 16 at 7 am, taking the total number of COVID-19 patients in the country to 182.
Case 182, aged 32, had returned from Malaysia and was completing a mandatory 21-day quarantine at a government center where he tested positive. He lives in Htantlang township in Chin State and has been admitted to a station hospital at Htantlang for treatment. It is unclear if Case 182 was part of 391 illegal Myanmar migrants repatriated by the Malaysian authorities on May 11.
The National Health Laboratory tested 267 other persons suspected of being infected with the virus but all the results were negative. From January 31 to May 15 at 8 pm, the government tested 12,995 people for the disease. The COVID-19 count in Myanmar to date is 182, with six deaths and 89 recoveries, according to the health ministry data.
So far, there are seven COVID-19 patients from Chin State - five from Tedim, one from Hakha and one from Htantlang township.
Two out of seven patients in Chin State are on the road to recovery after recent tests showed no remaining signs of the virus. This include Case 1, a 36-year-old US green card holder who returned to Myanmar and tested positive on March 23.
No cases have been found yet in Kayin, Tanintharyi, Ayeyarwady, Rakhine, and Kayah Regions and States.
Aid groups said there are an estimated 500,000 documented and illegal Myanmar migrant workers in Malaysia.
Last week, a total of 16 Myanmar citizens who were charged and punished for petty crime in Thailand also returned to the country via the Thailand-Myanmar No.2 Friendship Bridge at Myawaddy on May 13, said Kayin State Hluttaw MP U Thant Zin Aung..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-05-16
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-16
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"The Myanmar government is preparing to reopen basic education schools in July and will release exam results before schools reopen, Basic Education Department Director-General U Ko Lay Win told The Irrawaddy.
In Myanmar, the academic year usually starts in June and ends in March, with schools closing for summer holidays from March to June, and exam results are normally released in mid-April. Due to the COVID-19 crisis, the government decided to postpone the start of the school year until July.
All basic education schools from the primary to secondary level will open in July but they will open in phases, rather than simultaneously, U Ko Lay Win said.
“Schools will reopen in the third week of July at the latest. The Education Ministry is doing its best to ensure a safe environment for the children,” said U Ko Lay Win.
The ministry will provide free face shields and masks for students and teachers and will provide digital thermometers to schools for temperature screenings. It will also arrange washbasins in schools, apply safe distancing measures in classrooms and take other preventative measures such as creating separate morning and evening sessions for schools with large numbers of students..."
Source/publisher:
"The Irrawaddy" (Thailand)
Date of publication:
2020-05-14
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-15
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
more
Description:
"member of a Chinese military medical team works at a laboratory for testing COVID-19 at the No. 1 Defence Services General Hospital in Mingaladon township, Yangon, Myanmar, April 30, 2020. A team of medical personnel from the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) on Thursday provided assistance to Myanmar military in building a laboratory for testing COVID-19..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-05-01
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-02
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Sub-title:
In its delayed response to the pandemic, Aung San Suu Kyi’s government prioritizes the country’s ethnic majority.
Description:
"In Myanmar’s northern Kachin state, a short-lived street mural this month showed health care workers fighting to save the planet from a virus cast by death personified. It featured a Myanmar flag and a call for unity amid the coronavirus pandemic: “Stay at home, save lives,” it said. “We fight together.”
Before it was painted over, the mural was intended to raise awareness about COVID-19. Instead, its creators were charged in a case that is emblematic of Myanmar’s inadequate response to the pandemic. The three artists who painted the mural were accused of blasphemy after Buddhist nationalists complained that Death’s robe resembled that of a monk. The arbitrary censorship mirrored larger trends. Slow to acknowledge the coronavirus crisis, Myanmar authorities and leaders are instead stoking nationalism, a trend that both undermines public health efforts and puts vulnerable ethnic groups at risk.
Largely due to lack of testing, it wasn’t until March 23 that Myanmar confirmed its first case of the coronavirus: a Myanmar citizen living in the United States who had recently returned for a wedding. The announcement brought an end to weeks of government bragging about Myanmar’s supposed lack of cases. Nearly two weeks later, the doctor who examined the first patient revealed that no one who had come into contact with him was tested. Health officials then scrambled to administer tests and found that the patient’s mother and a few other contacts were also infected..."
Source/publisher:
"Foreign Policy" (USA)
Date of publication:
2020-04-01
Date of entry/update:
2020-05-02
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"The total number of COVID-19 infections in Myanmar has risen to 149, with three more confirmed cases reported late Tuesday, according to a release from the Ministry of Health and Sports.
All the newly confirmed cases are from Yangon region and were under quarantine as they were in close contact with previously confirmed cases.
According to the ministry's release, 16 patients have recovered from the disease so far.
Myanmar has reported five deaths of COVID-19 as of Tuesday since the infectious disease was first detected in the country on March 23..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-04-29
Date of entry/update:
2020-04-29
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
" Myanmar President's Office Wednesday announced the formation of an inquiry committee to investigate into a recent armed attack on a vehicle of the World Health Organization (WHO) carrying COVID-19 surveillance samples in Rakhine state.
The WHO vehicle transporting swab samples to the national laboratory in Yangon was attacked in Minbya township of Rakhine state on April 20, said the President's Office, killing the driver and wounding a health worker on board.
The newly formed four-member inquiry committee is chaired by U Saw, chairman of Citizens' Fundamental Rights Affairs Committee of the House of Representatives, the presidential order said.
The inquiry committee is tasked to conduct field investigations at the area where the incident took place, to collect testimonies of witnesses, to acquire evidential materials and information, to gather views from the experts and others.
The committee is given rights to conduct the investigations in accordance with the country's Code of Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act as well as to question military, police personnel and other officials who are needed for the inquires..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-04-29
Date of entry/update:
2020-04-29
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"The Myanmar government has formed a coordination and cooperation committee to work with ethnic armed groups in the fight against COVID-19, said an order issued by the President's Office on Tuesday.
The presidential order stressed that the government has been making strenuous efforts to adopt measures of prevention, control and treatment of COVID-19 without any discrimination on racial and religious grounds, based on a "No one left behind policy".
Chaired by Dr. Tin Myo Win, vice chairman of the National Reconciliation and Peace Center, the four-member committee was formed with an aim to make the measures effective concerning prevention, control and treatment of COVID-19 in the areas where ethnic armed groups are residing, the order said.
The committee is assigned to exchange information related to COVID-19 and boost cooperation in monitoring returnees through the border gate, transferring patients if there are suspected COVID-19 cases and tracing contacts, among others.
The committee will conduct coordination and cooperation among ethnic armed groups, regional and state governments in the fight against the epidemic..."
Source/publisher:
"Xinhua" (China)
Date of publication:
2020-04-28
Date of entry/update:
2020-04-28
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"Sign up here for our daily coronavirus newsletter on what you need to know, and subscribe to our Covid-19 podcast for the latest news and analysis.
The Covid-19 crisis has disrupted Myanmar’s efforts to develop its fledgling insurance industry. At the same time, it’s showing why coverage is important, according to Dai-ichi Life Insurance Myanmar Ltd.
The crisis highlights the value of health-care and life coverage in a nation where only about two out of 10,000 people have insurance, said Zarchi Tin, the firm’s chief executive officer. An economic slowdown may make premiums less affordable for some people, she said.
“Like most companies, Covid-19 has brought disruptions to our business,” Zarchi Tin said in a telephone interview Friday. “It’s also made us more agile..."
Source/publisher:
"Bloomberg News" (New York)
Date of publication:
2020-04-27
Date of entry/update:
2020-04-28
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"Myanmar lawyer Thiri had been excited about her wedding and new job this year — before the coronavirus threw both into doubt. With the stars very much unaligned, she turned to an astrology app for help.
For a fee of a few dollars, Thiri’s online mystic advised the 26-year-old to carry out kind deeds around her home, from donating flowers to feeding animals on the street, to ensure good karma.
“I’m going to follow all her advice,” Thiri said, praising the Min Thein Kha app for its convenience at a time when the doors to her usual real-life astrologer at a downtown Yangon temple are securely shut for the city’s lockdown.
The Min Thein Kha platform — the only one of its kind in Myanmar — was launched two years ago. Its creators claim to have two million registered customers and 50,000 daily active users.
Users log on, select one of the 23 astrologers profiled on the app and submit a question, paying in advance by bank or mobile phone transfer with the promise of an audio file reply within 48 hours.
Uncertainty caused by the coronavirus outbreak has seen the number of questions rocket by 50 percent, says Bagan Innovation Technology, the company behind the virtual fortune-telling service..."
Source/publisher:
"Japan Times" (Japan)
Date of publication:
2020-04-27
Date of entry/update:
2020-04-27
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"Myanmar lawyer Thiri had been excited about her wedding and new job this year - before the coronavirus threw both into doubt. With the stars very much unaligned, she turned to an astrology app for help.
For a fee of a few dollars, Thiri's online mystic advised the 26-year-old to carry out kind deeds around her home, from donating flowers to feeding animals on the street, to ensure good karma.
"I'm going to follow all her advice," Thiri tells AFP, praising the Min Thein Kha app for its convenience at a time when the doors to her usual real-life astrologer at a downtown Yangon temple are securely shut for the city's lockdown. The Min Thein Kha platform - the only one of its kind in Myanmar - was launched two years ago. Its creators claim to have two million registered customers and 50,000 daily active users. Users log on, select one of the 23 astrologers profiled on the app and submit a question, paying in advance by bank or mobile phone transfer with the promise of an audio file reply within 48 hours..."
Source/publisher:
"CNA" ( Singapore)
Date of publication:
2020-04-25
Date of entry/update:
2020-04-26
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Sub-title:
Trade plummets, factories close, thousands near unemployment as virus spares Myanmar's population but preys on industries
Description:
"All eyes in Myanmar have been on the country’s parliament since a debate on proposed constitutional amendments commenced last week.
However, a group of military-appointed lawmakers stole the limelight on Wednesday with a distinctive arrival at the Union Parliament in the political capital, Nay Pyi Taw.
It was not because they carried guns to parliament; rather, it was the fact that all 116 military lawmakers wore protective face masks.
A member of the ruling National League party said their most likely aim was to raise public awareness on the threat posed by the global coronavirus outbreak.
“People pay attention to the Hluttaw [Burmese term for parliament] these days. So, they might have thought the timing was right to send a message to the public about the coronavirus threat,” he told Anadolu Agency over the phone on Wednesday.
“In my opinion, it is a good idea. But I don’t know if it is just a stunt or a sincere show of concern,” said the lawmaker, who requested anonymity due to a fear of reprisal.
The move came after the military announced earlier this week that the outbreak may postpone the annual ceremony of Armed Forces Day on March 27.
Myanmar, which shares a long and porous border with neighboring China, is surprisingly not among the over 75 countries with confirmed COVID-19 cases.
However, the country’s health authorities have warned of a potential outbreak and urged people to avoid mass gatherings.
In its daily press release on Wednesday, the health ministry said there were no coronavirus cases in the country but said an outbreak was still possible..."
Source/publisher:
"Anadolu Agency" (Ankara)
Date of publication:
2020-03-06
Date of entry/update:
2020-03-06
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"YANGON-Myanmar Embassy in Beijing, China, announced that two Myanmar criminals in Hubei Province, China, were infected with COVID-19.
They were charged with drug dealing and trafficking cases in Hubei, the epicenter of the COVID-19 outbreak.
Two Myanmar COVID-19 patients were sent to Mobile Cabin Hospital on February 27th and 28th and they are being received medical treatments.
Although the two inmates are in stable condition, they weren’t allowed to discharge from the hospital. The Prison Department (branch) in Hubei Province is carrying out Psychological Crisis Intervention and Persuasion since the beginning of two Myanmar inmates were infected with COVID-19.
The announcement also reported that 67 Myanmar sailors were being detained for smuggling at the 18 prisons across China.
At present, Hubei Province has been in lockdown since last month, and the people are not allowed to go from one street to another..."
Source/publisher:
Eleven Media Group (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-03-06
Date of entry/update:
2020-03-06
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Tuberculosis and other lung/respiratory tract diseases, Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"A total of 154 Myanmar citizens have so far returned from China with the help of the Myanmar embassy in Beijing following the spread of the coronavirus, the embassy reported.
Some Myanmar citizens working in China made contact with the embassy saying that they wanted to return home in fear of COVID-19.
The embassy sent 64 Myanmar citizens in the first batch to Chinshwehaw border gate on the Myanmar-China border on March 1.
The group included 12 pregnant women and their husbands and those with poor health.
Again, 59 people were sent in the second batch on March 2. Among them were 15 Chin nationals. The third batch was also sent on the same day. They were sent in accompany with two Chinese doctors and 14 police officers.
The returnees will be handed over to Myanmar authorities after medical checkups, citizenship scrutiny, and other checks..."
Source/publisher:
"Eleven Media Group" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-03-04
Date of entry/update:
2020-03-05
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Public Health, China-Burma relations
Language:
more
Description:
"Globally, a person dies from suicide every 40 seconds, and it is estimated that for every death, 20 others have attempted to take their own lives. The vast majority of suicides take place in low- and middle-income countries, according to the World Health Organization.
Young people’s vulnerability to suicide-related mental health problems is particularly concerning in Myanmar, a country that has long grappled with conflict and humanitarian crises. “There is a strong association between conflict, forced migration and higher rates of mental and psychosocial disorders,” said Eri Taniguchi, a UNFPA specialist in issues relating to gender-based violence.
“As we all know, the vulnerabilities of women, girls, youth and adolescents increase in humanitarian settings, while mental health and psychosocial needs tend to be overlooked or considered not a priority,” she added.
UNFPA, the lead agency for mental health and psychosocial support in Myanmar, is working to change that. With the Johns Hopkins University, UNFPA chairs a working group that has established a referral system for mental health and psychosocial services.
“Suicide is a serious public health problem,” Ms. Taniguchi said. “However it is preventable with timely, evidence-based and often low-cost intervention.”..."
Source/publisher:
United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) (New York)
Date of publication:
2020-03-04
Date of entry/update:
2020-03-05
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
Mental health, Public Health
Language:
more
Sub-title:
A fifth person suspected of having COVID-19 in Myanmar has tested negative for the illness, the Health Ministry said.
Description:
"The Myanmar government said it has found no cases of the disease within its borders, more than two months after COVID-19 was first reported in Wuhan, China.
The 26-year-old Myanmar man and his wife tested negative for the disease, after he had been in close contact with a Myanmar woman who became infected with COVID-19 while working as a maid in Singapore, the ministry said.
The man and his wife have been quarantined at a hospital in Kyaukpadaung township of Mandalay Region since February 26, as part of the government’s response to the threat.
On Tuesday, the ministry said four people suspected of having the disease, including a 38-year-old Chinese man and a 37-year-old New Zealand man, tested negative for the virus. The test results were provided by the National Health Laboratory, which recently acquired hundreds of testing kits for the virus.
COVID-19 has killed over 3000 people and infected more than 90,000 globally..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-03-05
Date of entry/update:
2020-03-05
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Tuberculosis and other lung/respiratory tract diseases, Public Health
Language:
more
Sub-title:
The government will continue sending workers abroad, even to South Korea, which is now the centre of the COVID-19 epidemic in more than 70 countries, a senior labour official said.
Description:
"Daw Thin Thin Lwin, assistant director of the Overseas Job Agency under the Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population, said that the government had sent 23,586 workers to Thailand, 4408 to Malaysia, 69 to Singapore, 267 to Korea, 761 to Japan, 58 to UAE, 67 to Jordan and 11 to Qatar in January.
"We will not stop sending workers abroad, even to South Korea,” she said.
Thousands of Myanmar nationals continue to seek work abroad due to Myanmar’s slumping economy and lack of jobs.
From 2011 through February, over 40,000 Myanmar workers went to South Korea, she said. On Monday, the Health Ministry announced that Singapore had notified it that a 25-year-old Myanmar woman working as a maid in the city-state had tested positive for COVID-19, the first such case involving a Myanmar citizen.
As of Wednesday, the Myanmar government said, the country had no confirmed cases of COVID-19, which has killed over 3000 people since the outbreak began in Wuhan, China, on December 31..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-03-04
Date of entry/update:
2020-03-05
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Tuberculosis and other lung/respiratory tract diseases, Public Health, Labour issues in Burma
Language:
more
Sub-title:
India is increasing competing with China in its neighbourhood, so helping out in a crisis is a good way to make friends.
Description:
"The Indian Air Force last week evacuated 112 people stranded in Wuhan, one of several operations by India to the the Chinese city at the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak. But while India is one of many countries to help its citizens in need, what was also striking about this particular mission was that 36 people in this group were foreign nationals, primarily from Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Maldives.
The evacuation was somewhat overshadowed by the intense media coverage of US President Donald Trump’s recent visit to India, as well as attention on the outbreak of communal violence in the country. But while India’s evacuations of not just its own citizens but also those belonging to neighbouring countries was mainly a humanitarian mission, it did have significant political ramifications reflecting India’s regional diplomacy..."
Source/publisher:
"The Interpreter"
Date of publication:
2020-03-05
Date of entry/update:
2020-03-05
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Tuberculosis and other lung/respiratory tract diseases, Public Health
Language:
more
Sub-title:
The Ministry of Health and Sports released a notification to the public on February 23, warning that people should avoid crowded places as incidents of the novel coronavirus(COVID-19) could occur in Myanmar.
Description:
"Health experts are advising people to avoid going to festivals and places were people gather, such as busy shopping centers and markets.
“We should not hold festivals in Myanmar at the moment,” said Dr Khin Khin Gyi, deputy director of Contagious Disease Prevention and Eradication at the Department of Public Health.
“It would be better if they are not held at all,” she added. “I want to urge people to take protective measures, and that means avoiding unnecessary exposure to the virus in public gatherings,” said Dr Khin Maung Lwin, director (retired) of the Ministry of Health and Sports.
In a statement issued by the ministry, the government warned that “even those who have not come into contact with infected people, or those who have not travelled to high-risk countries, are at risk of contracting COVID-19”. Close contact with others in crowded places increases the risk of infection.
“The most important thing is contact. If there are infected people near you, you can get infected,” said Dr Aung Tun, advisor to the Ministry of Health and Sports..."
Source/publisher:
"Myanmar Times" (Myanmar)
Date of publication:
2020-03-04
Date of entry/update:
2020-03-04
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Tuberculosis and other lung/respiratory tract diseases, Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"Myanmar stopped a cruise boat carrying hundreds of tourists from docking in the country, a senior tourism official said on Tuesday, citing fears passengers could be carrying the coronavirus.
The Silver Spirit, a luxury liner operated by Monaco-based Silversea Cruises, last docked at the Thai island of Phuket and was scheduled to stop at Thilawa, outside Myanmar’s commercial capital of Yangon on Wednesday.
“We have informed the ... port authorities that the entry of this ship should not be allowed,” Khin Maung Soe, deputy permanent secretary of the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism, told Reuters by phone.
He said he did not know whether any of the passengers were showing symptoms of the virus. Myanmar stopped a cruise boat carrying hundreds of tourists from docking in the country, a senior tourism official said on Tuesday, citing fears passengers could be carrying the coronavirus.
The Silver Spirit, a luxury liner operated by Monaco-based Silversea Cruises, last docked at the Thai island of Phuket and was scheduled to stop at Thilawa, outside Myanmar’s commercial capital of Yangon on Wednesday.
“We have informed the ... port authorities that the entry of this ship should not be allowed,” Khin Maung Soe, deputy permanent secretary of the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism, told Reuters by phone.
He said he did not know whether any of the passengers were showing symptoms of the virus..."
Source/publisher:
"Reuters" (UK)
Date of publication:
2020-03-03
Date of entry/update:
2020-03-04
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Tuberculosis and other lung/respiratory tract diseases, Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"Singapore has sent medical supplies to Myanmar that will allow doctors to detect and contain the coronavirus outbreak.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said on Wednesday (March 4) that the Government has contributed 3,000 diagnostic tests and two polymerase chain reaction (PCR) machines to test for Covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.
MFA said the contribution was in response to a request from the Myanmar Ministry of Health and Sports. The supplies were handed over from the Singapore's Ambassador to Myanmar, Ms Vanessa Chan, to Myanmar National Health Laboratory deputy director-general Htay Htay Tin at Yangon International Airport.
Singapore had previously sent medical supplies to China on Feb 19 and Feb 8.
For the Feb 19 dispatch, Singapore's Ambassador to China, Mr Lui Tuck Yew, handed over the country's humanitarian assistance to People's Liberation Army General Hospital Medical Service Department deputy head Zhang Fu in Beijing.
The assistance was to help communities severely affected by the coronavirus outbreak in China and aid efforts to contain the virus, MFA said on Feb 20..."
Source/publisher:
"The Straits Times" (Singapore)
Date of publication:
2020-03-04
Date of entry/update:
2020-03-04
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Language:
more
Sub-title:
Decision was made as proactive measure before cruise ship arrived in commercial capital Yangon as planned
Description:
"Myanmar has refused the entry of a tourist cruise ship in the country’s commercial capital out of fear of the coronavirus epidemic, which has a large presence in Southeast Asia.
Myanmar, which to date has no confirmed case of coronavirus, was a scheduled four-day stopover for The Silver Spirit, operated by Bahamas-based Silver Sea Cruises, in Yangon, but the government on Monday reversed the permission to dock.
Khin Khin Gyi, deputy director at the Health and Sports Ministry, said the decision was made at an emergency meeting held in the capital Nay Pyi Taw late Sunday.
“The main reason is that the cruise ship stopped in several countries with confirmed coronavirus cases,” she told Anadolu Agency by phone on Monday.
The ship, carrying 485 tourists from 22 countries and over 350 crew members, last stopped at the Thai resort island of Phuket.
Myanmar has examined 45 suspected cases, but none has tested positive for the virus, the ministry said on Sunday..."
Source/publisher:
"Anadolu Agency" (Ankara)
Date of publication:
2020-03-02
Date of entry/update:
2020-03-03
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Tuberculosis and other lung/respiratory tract diseases, Public Health
Language:
more
Description:
"Telling people that you are a “zero” may not get much attention. Telling people that you are a “patient zero”? That’s a different story.
Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, who also goes by the nickname Woz, momentarily caused a stir with the following tweet: Yeah, that’s not going to get zero reaction with the ongoing COVID-19 causing coronavirus (SARS-CoV2) outbreak occurring. The possible suggestion that he and his wife, Janet, may have been the “patient zeros” who brought the new coronavirus to the U.S. got all kinds of responses, ranging from people tweeting that Macs don’t get viruses to those wondering angrily why the Wozniaks took so long to see doctors.A patient zero is the first human to get infected by a pathogen like a virus and then subsequently spread it to others. There can be a patient zero for the overall SARS-CoV2 outbreak, that is the first human to have contracted the virus from a non-human source such as another animal. There can also be patient zeros for outbreaks in different locations, such as the persons who first introduced the virus to each country. It can be very, very difficult to identify who really was the patient zero in each of these cases because that person may have had very non-specific symptoms or even no symptoms at all..."
Source/publisher:
"Forbes" (USA)
Date of publication:
2020-03-03
Date of entry/update:
2020-03-03
Grouping:
Individual Documents
Category:
COVID-19 (Coronavirus), Tuberculosis and other lung/respiratory tract diseases, Public Health
Language:
more