Global Covid-19 caseload tops 207 mn; Covid deaths at 4.36 mn across world

The global coronavirus caseload has topped 207 million, while the deaths have surged to more than 4.36 million and vaccinations soared to over 4.58 billion, according to the Johns Hopkins University.

In its latest update on Monday morning, the University's Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) revealed that the current global caseload, death toll and vaccination tally stood at 207,137,460, 4,361,399 and 4,582,658,758, respectively.

The US continues to be the worst-hit country with the world's highest number of cases and deaths at 36,669,696 and 621,605, respectively, according to the CSSE. In terms of infections, India follows in second place with 32,192,576 cases.

The other worst countries with over 3 million cases are Brazil (20,364,099), Russia (6,511,431), France (6,471,262), the UK (6,297,157), Turkey (6,078,623), Argentina (5,084,635), Colombia (4,867,761), Spain (4,693,540), Italy (4,440,669), Iran (4,425,821), Indonesia (3,854,354), Germany (3,828,278) and Mexico (3,091,971), the CSSE figures showed.

Covid deaths across the world

In terms of deaths, Brazil comes second with 569,058 fatalities. Nations with a death toll of over 100,000 are India (431,225), Mexico (248,167), Peru (197,340), Russia (167,595), the UK (131,269), Italy (128,432), Colombia (123,459), Indonesia (117,588), France (112,705) and Argentina (109,041).

As of August 16, Cuba has surpassed 4,000 total deaths from Covid-19, the Ministry of Public Health reported. The Caribbean nation registered 8,636 new cases and 98 more deaths in the last 24 hours, for a total of 517,668 infections and 4,023 deaths, the Ministry said on Sunday, Xinhua reported.

Transmission rates will slow as the vaccination program progresses and the protocols to deal with the virus are reinforced, said Francisco Duran, director of hygiene and epidemiology of the health ministry. Havana, the country's main population centre with more than 2 million inhabitants, reported 1,071 new cases, followed by the province of Cienfuegos (992).

Canada's Covid cases surpass 1.45 million

Canada's new Covid-19 cases continue rising, bringing the cumulative total to 1,451,211 cases, including 26,700 deaths, as of Sunday afternoon, according to CTV.

At the national level, the Delta variant currently accounts for the majority of recently reported variant cases in the country, Xinhua reported. Ontario, the most populous province in Canada, reported 511 new cases on Sunday.

Of the cases added, 350 were recorded in individuals who are unvaccinated and 67 were in those partially vaccinated. The remaining 94 cases were found in fully vaccinated people.

Africa's Covid cases surpass 7.25 million

The number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in Africa reached 7,257,094 as of Sunday afternoon, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) said.

The Africa CDC, the specialized healthcare agency of the African Union, said the death toll from the pandemic stands at 182,929, while 6,327,912 patients across the continent have recovered from the disease, Xinhua reported.

South Africa, Morocco, Tunisia and Ethiopia are the countries with the most cases in the continent, according to the Africa CDC. South Africa has recorded the most Covid-19 cases in Africa with 2,595,447 cases so far, while the northern African country Morocco reported 752,076 cases as of Sunday afternoon, it was noted.