2Secure | Covid Update | 2021-01-20
Summary
- Over 5 million new cases and 86 392 Covid-related deaths recorded globally during week 1.
- 146 775 doses of the Covid-19 vaccines given in Sweden.
- A total of 523 486 confirmed Covid cases, including 10 323 deaths reported in Sweden.
- Increase in weekly Covid cases in all parts of the world except South-East Asia.
Covid Situation in Sweden
Sweden has recorded 523 486 Covid cases, including 10 323 deaths since the beginning of the pandemic. Since November, Sweden is experiencing a second elevated infection curve with weekly Covid-related deaths surpassing 600 during weeks 51, 52, and 53. As was mentioned in last week’s report, the holiday season has made the reporting lag behind and we may still see adjustments in the data for the latter weeks of 2020.
Sweden began vaccinating its population on 27 December and in the latest available data indicates that 146 775 people had received their first dose of the vaccine. During the coming four weeks, Pfizer will deliver less vaccines than expected delivered to Europe, Sweden included, due to upgrades in the Pfizer production line. The Swedish Public Health Authority is remains confident that Swedes can return to a more normal life by summer. 2Secure can assist you analysing the latest Covid-restrictions in your geographic area of interest. Contact us for a free discussion about your needs.
Covid situation Internationally
Globally, there are now over 93.8 million reported Covid cases and over 2 million deaths since the start of the pandemic. During week 1, the number of new cases increased with over 21 percent compared to the previous week. All but one of the regions listed by WHO saw an increase in the number of weekly reported Covid-cases. South-East Asia was the only country that reported a negative trend, albeit within one percent of the number of cases from the week before.
The Americas saw the highest absolute increase in new weekly cases as well as the third highest percentage increase in cases relative to the week before. The United States continues to report the highest number of new cases within the Americas, followed by Brazil. The United States reported 1 786 773 new cases during the first week of 2021, while Brazil reported 313 130 during the same period. Over the coming months, we might see a change in the infection rates of the United States as President-Elect Joe Biden intends to implement new strategies to combat the virus after his inauguration on Wednesday.
Europe showed a significant increase in both the number of new Covid cases and Covid-related deaths during week 51. Within the region, Russia, the UK, and France have recorded the highest number of new cases within the region during the last week. Because of the current infection rate, many European countries are currently going through lockdowns and travel restrictions have increased throughout the region.
Although South-East Asia still show a decrease in weekly cases, the trend has almost stagnated, showing less than a one percent decrease compared to the week before. The region experienced its worst weeks in August and September, followed by a significant decrease in new cases. Within the region, India and Indonesia continue to show the highest numbers new infections and deaths. However, as India is experiencing a steady decrease in weekly infections, Indonesian numbers are increasing. As such, Indonesia has now surpassed India in the number of weekly Covid-related deaths.
The Eastern Mediterranean (Middle East) shows an increase in new cases indicating we may very soon see an increase in the number of Covid-related deaths too. While Iran has seen a decrease in new cases since the beginning of December, Lebanon, the United Arab Emirates and Tunisia have experienced the opposite.
The infection rate continues to increase in Africa, with South Africa reporting the majority of new cases. During week one, South Africa reported 125 287 new cases and 3 649 deaths. The reported number of cases in Africa is by far the highest in South Africa.
The number of weekly reported Covid cases and Covid-related deaths are now both increasing in the Western Pacific with Japan, Malaysia and the Philippines being the hardest hit countries during week 51. Preliminary data for week two indicates that we can expect this infection rate to increase further.
Considering the travel landscape and vaccination passports
With the introduction of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines, the vaccination process is becoming more and more global. Many places, including Europe and North America, are about a month into the vaccination process while China and Russia started their processes early in July and August. Reports state that over 44 million doses have been administered globally. As this number keeps growing, countries are preparing new measures to break free from travel restrictions and enable a return to a more interconnected world with increased travel.
As more people are being vaccinated, countries are pondering vaccination requirements as an alternative to entry restrictions such as a quarantine or outright entry bans. Several countries have stated interest in what could be described as a Covid-19 passport to ease travel for its citizens. Denmark is one of the countries at the forefront with their Health Ministry stating that such as solution is under development and might be possible in the near future to respond to potential vaccine requirements when travelling. Tech businesses have also jumped at the chance to involve themselves and several software solutions for easy identification of travelers who have received one of the Covid-19 vaccines are under development. However, some further investigation into how long Covid-19 vaccines are effective might be required before many countries start utilizing such certificates.
Despite the vaccine being rolled out in the US and Europe over the past few weeks and many countries working to facilitate the alleviation of restrictions, many companies remain largely unsure about their company’s position concerning vaccine availability and the resumption of business travel, highlighting the need for support developing or reviewing their travel risk management policy. New solutions, such as Covid-19 passports, are just one of many potential factors to consider when planning your business travels in pandemic times. 2Secure is working to review the impact of Covid-restrictions, Covid-vaccines, and the changing risk landscape in Europe, to ensure client’s travel risk management policies facilitate a safe return to the market and support increased growth. Nearly all companies expect an increase in percentage spent on travel for sales meetings and service trips with current and prospective customers, and due diligence activities with international partners.
Contact 2Secure today to learn how we can help you remove security and risk burdens from your already busy schedule as well as support you in the implementation of travel risk management processes that take the ever-changing travel landscape of the pandemic into consideration.
