Coronavirus: the state of the world facing the pandemic on Wednesday, April 29

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While nearly 220,000 people have died from coronavirus worldwide, the countries most affected by the pandemic are beginning to gradually deconfinement in the hope of reviving the economy. The recession is hitting the richest countries hard. But it looks even more dramatic for developing countries and for informal workers who are at risk of falling into poverty.

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• " A maximum of French " called to return to work

In France , who announced Tuesday the terms of a very gradual deconfinement, the Minister of Economy Bruno Le Maire called on "a  maximum of French people to return to work  " and "  to collectively prepare for economic recovery  ". According to figures from the Directorate General of Health, the country has registered an additional 427 deaths from coronavirus in the past 24 hours, for a total of 24,087 since March 1. However, the decline observed for three weeks in the intensive care unit is confirmed, with 180 patients less Wednesday April 29.

After France and Spain, Poland has also announced the reopening of nurseries, hotels and shopping centers from May 4 and 6, in order to revive the economy. The head of government, however, called on the Poles to maintain "  social discipline  ", such as wearing a mask. The balance sheet of the epidemic amounts to 12,415 contaminations and 606 deaths. But for the first time there were more healings than contaminations in a day.

• UK death toll rises to 26,097

The number of deaths from the new coronavirus in the UK increased sharply to 26,097 deaths on Wednesday. It is the second heaviest assessment in Europe after Italy. Tuesday's reported 21,678 dead. A total of 165,221 cases (+4,076) have been officially confirmed, Foreign Minister Dominic Raab said at a press conference.

This is not a "  sudden resurgence  " of the pandemic, said Dominic Raab, but the consequence of a new counting method: for the first time, this daily report includes deaths that occurred in the retirement homes between mid-March and April 28, when it was previously confined to hospitals. Faced with pressure from managers of retirement homes, who considered themselves forgotten, the government promised to include them, but the process took time, as it involved collecting data from over 15,000 establishments.

• Italy wants to save tourist season

While air traffic has recorded a historic drop of 52.9% worldwide over one year, in Italy , the Minister of Culture is trying to save the tourist season. In an interview with the daily Il Messagero , he encourages Italians, but also foreign tourists to come and spend the summer in his country. In Russia , however, foreigners are not welcome. The ban on entry to the territory targeted at them was extended beyond April 30.

Italy might have to do without German tourists. Berlin is  extending until mid-June its warning about tourist trips abroad. "  We have not yet reached the point where we can safely recommend trips  " abroad, "which  is why it is necessary to extend the warning on travel around the world to mid-June  " said Foreign Minister Heiko Maas at a press conference in Berlin on Wednesday.

In Ukraine , where there are 250 dead for 9,866 cases registered, hundreds of small entrepreneurs demonstrated in the streets of Kiev to demand an easing of the confinement imposed since March. In response, the government announced the reopening of 900 food markets.

• The epidemic ends 10 years of growth in the United States

The United States remains the country that pays the highest price for the health crisis with 58,351 deaths. The coronavirus killed more Americans than the Vietnam War. The epidemic has also put an end to ten years of economic growth. According to figures from the Commerce Department, gross domestic product fell 4.3% in the first quarter and is expected to fall 11.8% in the second quarter. This is the largest drop since 2008 during the financial crisis. Boeing has announced a drop in production of its long-haul aircraft, and by 10% of its global workforce. Twenty-six million people have registered as unemployed in the past five weeks.

The coronavirus pandemic will have "a  huge impact on poverty,  " said the secretary general of the International Labor Organization . More than half of the world's workers and three-quarters of the informal workers, 1.6 billion people, are at risk of losing their livelihoods in the second quarter. This is already the case in India.

While an economic recovery remains hypothetical for the time being, the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund Kristalina Georgieva asked countries to "do everything" to promote an environmentally friendly recovery.

• Chinese parliament to hold annual session on May 22

In China , the cradle of the epidemic, President Xi Jinping has announced that the annual session of Parliament, which usually brings together 3,000 deputies, will finally be held on May 22. The opportunity for the head of state to proclaim victory over the virus when he is criticized for having delayed in revealing the seriousness of the epidemic. On the agenda of the Assembly this year, the prohibition of the illegal trade in wild animals and the strengthening of legislation for the prevention of epidemics.

According to some researchers, a resurgence of a serious inflammatory syndrome in children could be linked to the coronavirus. Several cases have been reported in Europe and the United States.

Our selection on SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus

• Listen to Coronavirus Info , daily chronicle on the pandemic

• Explanation:  The origins of the Covid-19

• Analyzes:
→  What strategies to face the epidemic ?
→  A vaccine, the only solution to stem the pandemic?
→  What impact on conflict zones?

• Practical questions:
→  What is known about the mode of contagion
→  What results for ongoing clinical trials?
→  How to make a mask and use it well

Find all our articles, reports, chronicles and programs on the coronavirus by clicking here .

See also the files of RFI Savoirs  on the Covid-19:
•  Birth of a pandemic
•  Everyday life put to the test
•  The history of epidemics
•  Science facing the Covid-19
•  The geopolitical consequences

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