COVID-19 Jabs Jump 30pc in Week

Feb 19 , 2022


[ssba-buttons]

Officials at the Ministry of Health report that over 3.5 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines were administered over the past week. The figure brings the total to around 14.5 million, a 30pc increase. Health professionals had administered close to six million doses in a month as part of a revamped campaign last November but the figures levelled off over the past month. The surge is attributable to a recent series of shipments of COVID-19 vaccines from development partners and foreign governments. EU member states donated over 13 million doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine to the Ministry through the World Health Organisation's (WHO) COVAX facility earlier this month. The governments of China and the US have also contributed millions of doses over the past few weeks.


Radar

US Renews National Emergency, Sanctions on Ethiopia

The United States has extended the national emergency and sanctions on Ethiopia for another year under the African Growth & Opportunity Act (AGOA). Signed by President Donald J. Trump, the measure was first declared on September 17, 2021, through an executive order citing the conflict in northern region of the country as an "unusual and extraordinary" threat to U.S. national security and foreign policy. The extension, effective until September 17, 2026, keeps in place restrictions targeti...


Radar

Rockefeller Pitches Clean Cooking to Curb School Meal Emissions

A recent study has revealed the staggering environmental toll of school feeding programs. A single school serving 400 students can burn through the equivalent of 56 hectares of forest each year to fuel cooking. The Rockefeller Foundation flagged the health risks too, with most cooks, predominantly women, breathing smoke levels ten times higher than the World Health Organisation's safe limit. "If every school meal transitioned to clean cooking with electricity and solar, the emissions saved wo...


Radar

Sun-Powered Grid Brings Light to Qunbi District

A new 600KW solar mini-grid in East Hararge'sQunbi district has connected 2,200 households to electricity, marking a milestone in the recent rural electrification push. Ethiopian Electric Utility (EEU) laid seven kilometres of medium-voltage and 10 kilometres of low-voltage lines, installing four transformers to reach communities long cut off from power. Customers cover only meter and installation costs before accessing the service. The project is part of the national strategy to expand energ...