Connect with us

International

Covid-19 cases surpass one million in Colombia

Published

on

Covid-19 cases surpass one million in Colombia

Health authorities in Colombia have confirmed that the number of Covid-19 infections recorded in the country has surpassed one million since the outbreak of the pandemic.

The last 24 hours saw 8,769 new infections, bringing the total to 1,007,711 since the first case was detected on March 6, making it the second country in Latin America to report that number in less than a week.

The country’s health ministry said on Saturday that number of deaths rose to 30,000 after authorities added 198 fatalities from the last 10 days.

READ ALSO: WHO warns countries on ‘dangerous track’, as researchers say US covid-19 death toll may exceed 500,000

Reacting to the development at an event in Chinchina, Caldas, President Ivan Duque stressed that Colombia has a relatively low death rate among Latin American countries on a per capita basis.

“We did much better than other countries. But I do not say this so that we feel proud, I say it because we must protect ourselves better,” he said.

The president said that he has allocated resources of “close to 11 percent of GDP” – some $31bn – to deal with the crisis.

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now