Paris (AFP)

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

- WHO fears 236,000 dead in Europe in three months -

The World Health Organization (WHO) considers "reliable" a projection predicting 236,000 additional deaths from Covid-19 in Europe by December 1, according to its regional director, who expressed concern about the "stagnation" of vaccination rate on the continent.

"Last week, the death toll in the region increased by 11%, with a reliable projection predicting 236,000 deaths in Europe by December 1," which would add to the 1.3 million deaths already caused by the pandemic on the Old Continent, according to the director of WHO Europe Hans Kluge.

- WHO / Unicef: priority for teachers for vaccination -

Teachers and school staff should be among the priority groups for vaccination against Covid-19, the European directorates of the WHO and Unicef ​​said on Monday.

We should "offer the vaccine against Covid-19 to teachers and other school staff as a target group of national vaccination plans", according to these UN institutions, calling on member states to put in place a vaccine strategy intended to maintain face-to-face teaching.

- Africa: doses of vaccines in Congo and a French donation -

Congo has received its first vaccine delivery under the Covax mechanism, with the receipt of more than 300,000 doses donated by the United States.

At the same time, France will send 10 million doses of AstraZeneca and Pfizer vaccines to Africa through the African Union (AU), the Elysee announced on Monday.

This partnership between Paris and the AU provides that these doses "will be allocated and distributed within the framework of the African Fund for the acquisition of vaccines (Avat) and the mechanism for a global access to the vaccine (Covax)", two initiatives intended to allow Africa to try to catch up in vaccination compared to developed countries.

Students and teachers at Widad Nasser Eddin High School for Girls in Hebron, Occupied West Bank, August 29, 2021 Hazem BADER AFP

- France: compulsory health pass for certain employees -

The introduction of the health pass took a new step on Monday in France, becoming compulsory at work for 1.8 million employees in contact with the public in restaurants, cinemas, museums, mainline trains, where it was already. required for customers.

At the same time, the Minister of the Economy Bruno Lemaire estimated that the implementation of the health pass in places open to the public in early August "had no impact on the country's economic activity".

"In bars and restaurants, credit card spending increased by 5% the week of August 9", that of the start of the introduction of the pass, "and by 8% the following week" compared to 2019 , justified Mr. Le Maire.

- 4.5 million deaths worldwide -

The Covid-19 pandemic has killed at least 4.5 million people around the world since the end of December 2019, according to a report established on Monday around 10:00 GMT by AFP from official sources.

With 1,290 daily deaths on average over the past 7 days, the United States has once again become the country with the most new deaths in the world.

The United States is also the most affected country in the world since the start of the pandemic, with 637,539 dead, ahead of Brazil (579,308), India (438,210), Mexico (258,165) and Peru (198,167).

The WHO estimates, taking into account the excess mortality directly and indirectly linked to Covid-19, that the toll of the pandemic could be two to three times higher than that calculated from official figures.

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© 2021 AFP