Nepal COVID 19 Weekly Update: May 01, 2021 — May 07, 2021
Total tests done: 158,089
Confirmed cases: 55,881
Recovered cases: 14,300
Total deaths: 318
COVID-19 cases
· According to the Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP), Nepal witnessed a record daily surge of new coronavirus cases for 4, 5, and 6 May 2021 consecutively.
· A total of 9,196 new cases were reported on 7 May 2021, which was the highest ever single-day spike within a week. Likewise, 2,905 people have recovered in the last 24 hours.
· Province-wise distribution of casesduring 1 till 7 May 2021has been presented in the table below:
Testing
· Within a period of one week, starting from 1 till 7 May 2021, 128,613 tests have been conducted across the country.
· Out of the total tests done, 124,449 were RT-PCR tests while 4,164 were Antigen tests.
Government orders
· Owing to the accelerating number of COVID-19 cases with new variants in recent days, a week-long prohibitory order effective from 29 April till 5 May 2021 was imposed in the Kathmandu Valley. However, considering the rising number of cases, the prohibitory order has been extended till 12 May 2021 with stricter restriction measures.
· While pharmacies and health-related shops can remain open all day, grocerystores are permitted to operate between 7 AM to 9 AM only. Likewise, vehicles are limited to emergency travel only. Most businesses, excluding some banks and government offices, are to remain closed.
· The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) announced that all domestic flights would be suspended from 3 May to 14 May 2021 and international flights from 6 May to 14 May 2021, except for two flights per week between Kathmandu and New Delhi.
· The Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation has asked the hotels designated as quarantine facilities for those traveling from India via Air Bubble service not to charge more than NPR 3,000 (USD 25.43) per person per day. It is mandatory for those traveling from abroad to quarantine themselves for 10 days.
· The MoHPhas issued a statementwarning private hospitals not to charge COVID-19 exorbitant fees. While the Ministry has declared such hospitals to be punished based on complaints received at the Ministry and local administration, there is an absence of clear guidelines regarding fee structure and complaint process.
· The Department of Foreign Employment Board in Nepal has suspended issuing work permits to foreign job seekers with effect till further notice as a way to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
Relief measures
· The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the US Department of Defense have provided USD 36.8 million and USD 3.1 million respectively for COVID-19 assistance in Nepal such as PPE, respiratory equipment, telemedicine equipment, etc.
· The Government of the United States has pledged an additional USD 8.5 million to support COVID-19relief efforts.
Procurement of medical supplies
· With the suspension of international flights as a part of the government’s containment measures, medical goods suppliers are unsure of importing oximeters, masks, oxygen concentrators, and others in the market any time soon.
· Although there is an option of bringing the goods on chartered flights, the Chemical and Medical Suppliers Association of Nepal is of the view that the goods can only be brought after sufficient amounts have been collected which could take time. Likewise, if the goods are to be brought by land and sea from China, it could take months by which time, which can cause an acute shortage in the country.
· The imports of any COVID-19 related medical goods have become expensive at the factories themselves because of their high demand as well as the weakening of Nepali currency.
· With an increasingly grim situation in the hospitals overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients as well as deaths mounting in the neighboring country India, the government of Nepal has started the process to import 20,000 oxygen cylinders and 100 ventilators from China fearing a potential oxygen crisis in Nepal. The first batch of oxygen supply is to be imported before 14 May 2021.
Economic Updates
· According to the Nepal Retailers Association, the cost of groceries has been soaring since the government announced restrictions starting 29 April 2021. The cost of sunflower oil has risen by NPR 20 per liter, rice by NPR 100–150 per 20-kg bag, lentils by NPR 15 per kg, sugar by NPR 10 per kg, and so on.
· The Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies has formed a rapid response team to ease the supply of essential goods and services during the prohibitory period starting from 29 April 2021. The team, including officials from the Ministry, has appointed liaison persons for the facilitation of transportation and supply of medical supplies, food, and other daily essentials. By doing this, the government has urged anyone facing any hassle during the supply of essential goods to directly contact their team or the Ministry.
Other information
· An open-source platform about COVID-19 in Nepal has been created. (Link to the website: https://covidnepal.org/) The website lists details on the COVID-19 cases, tests done, contact details of hospitals to get tested for COVID-19, hospital test available dates, hospital capacity data, and so on.
· Kathmandu faces an acute shortage of crematorium as COVID-19 deaths mount in the second wave. The only electric crematorium has a capacity for 16 bodies a day and is running in full capacity, which is why the dead are being cremated in makeshift pyres along BagmatiRiver.
· The US Government has pledged to share up to 60 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine globally. While 20 countries are on the list, Nepal is not. In response to this, the COVID Alliance for Nepal has sent an open letter to the US Ambassador to Nepal urging to pursue an immediate supply of vaccines for Nepal. The petition for such can be accessed here.
· The Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) has formed a Disaster Management and Communication Cell to coordinate and rescue the tourists who have been stranded in different parts of the country after the travel restrictions were imposed.
· The MoHP has endorsed a ‘Criteria for the use and determining the requirement of medical oxygen, 2078’ which has laid out points on when, how and at what rates to use the medical oxygens.
· Jamshedpur, Jharkhand of India had been supplying 150 tons of oxygen monthly to Nepal through Shankar Oxygen Gas Pvt. Ltd. However, after India banned oxygen exports to Nepal from the first week of April as per an order from its Supreme Court, the oxygen supply had stopped.
After this, in light of the rising number of COVID-19 cases, Nepali officials had been urging India to reconsider its decision by citing that the supply of oxygen cylinders in Nepal would not be enough and that the situation could get dire. Due to Nepal’s persistent requests, the Indian Home Ministry on 6 May 2021 issued a circular to all its State and District Magistrate’s offices directing them to start supplying oxygen to Nepal. The Chairperson of Shankar Gas has stated that the oxygen cylinders will reach Nepal by 8 May 2021, and as soon as two tankers arrive, two empty tankers will be sent back.
