Paris (AFP)

New measures, new reports and highlights: an update on the latest developments in the Covid-19 pandemic around the world.

- More than a million French people vaccinated with two doses -

France passed the million mark on Thursday who received two doses of the Covid-19 vaccine, while the circulation of the virus is still intense with more than 22,000 positive cases, according to figures from Public Health France (SpF).

- Africa exceeds 100,000 dead -

Africa, which is suffering a second wave of coronavirus, has passed the 100,000 death mark since the start of the pandemic, but the toll on the poor continent of 1.2 billion inhabitants is undoubtedly much higher.

The 54 countries in the region have a total of 100,000 deaths (for 3,793,660 reported cases), according to an AFP count.

The region, relatively spared, is the last, besides Oceania, to reach this threshold crossed in April by Europe.

- Biden pledges 4 billion for the Covax program -

US President Joe Biden will promise $ 4 billion for the Covax anti-Covid vaccination device at the G7 meeting on Friday, the White House said on Thursday.

A first tranche of $ 2 billion will be released "very quickly", said a senior US official.

A second tranche of 2 billion will be gradually released over two years, in 2021 and 2022.

- Extended period of isolation in France -

The isolation of people infected with Covid-19 will be reduced from seven to ten days from Monday, to deal with the risks posed by the more contagious variants, announced the French government.

- Aim to test in the EU -

The European Union recommends regular tests in mink farms, animals among which several hundred thousand cases of Covid-19 have been identified, and calls for sequencing, according to a report published on Thursday.

- Half of South Africans infected?

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Half of the 59 million South Africans have potentially been infected with Covid-19, according to two studies which estimate that several thousand deaths from the virus do not appear in official statistics.

- China offers 200,000 doses to Algeria -

Algeria will receive in the coming days a donation of 200,000 doses of the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine, Chinese Ambassador to Algeria Li Lianhe told the official APS agency on Thursday.

- Massive air losses -

The airline Air France-KLM lost 7.1 billion euros in 2020, an "unprecedented" shock caused by the Covid-19 which deprived the Franco-Dutch group of two-thirds of its customers.

The European aircraft manufacturer Airbus has announced a net loss of 1.1 billion euros in 2020, limiting the breakage despite the collapse of the aviation sector.

- Vatican: vaccinated or expelled -

Vatican employees refusing to be vaccinated against Covid-19 now risk penalties up to and including dismissal, according to a decree released Thursday by the Vatican City State, which employs around 5,000 people.

- More than 2.43 million dead -

The pandemic has killed at least 2.43 million people worldwide since the end of December 2019, according to a report established by the ADP from official sources on Thursday.

100,000 deaths have been recorded in Africa.

After the United States (492,999 dead), the countries with the most deaths are Brazil (243,457), Mexico (177,061), India (156,014) and the United Kingdom (118,933).

The number of victims is globally underestimated.

It is based on the daily reports of the national health authorities but excludes the revisions carried out a posteriori by statistical organizations.

brus-mlb / roc

© 2021 AFP