North Korea is on the brink of a Covid catastrophe unless swift action is taken to provide vaccinations and treatments, experts warn.
In the isolated country, the number of people reported to have contracted Covid has risen to a staggering almost 1.5 million.
North Korea reported another big rise in new cases, referring to it as “fever.” It comes only days after it admitted that it had identified Covid infections for the “first time” since the beginning of the global pandemic.
About 1.48 million have gotten Covid since the first case was reported last Thursday, less than a week ago. The outbreak is thought to be greater even than the official tally, because there is a lack of tests and resources to monitor infections, nonetheless treat them.
A serious Covid outbreak could unleash a humanitarian crisis in North Korea, experts warn, because the economy has been hurt significantly by closing its border with China due to the Covid pandemic. China is the country’s main trading partner. Also adding to economic battery includes natural disasters and years of international sanctions.
It is believed that the North Korean regime has not vaccinated any of its population, nor does it have access to antiviral drugs that have been used to treat Covid in other countries. There is a severe lack of intensive-care resources, and there is widespread malnourishment, which has made the population of 26 million more susceptible to the virus and other serious illnesses.
Offers from the international community to help have so far been met with silence. There is a concern that the leader, Kim Jong-un, may be willing to accept a large but “manageable” amount of Covid cases and deaths in order to avoid opening the country up to scrutiny from abroad.
Kim Jong-un criticized his country’s “immature” response in dealing with its first confirmed Covid outbreak yesterday. During a meeting of his ruling party’s Workers’ Party yesterday, Kim said the “immaturity in the state capacity for coping with the crisis” increased the “complexity and hardships” in fighting the Covid pandemic.
Be the first to comment