August 25, 2020 UPDATE
A roundup of domestic and international news
Newsroom, 25.08.2020, 19:57
COVID-19 RO In Romania, another 1,060 new cases of coronavirus infection were reported in 24 hours. The total number of infections rose to 80,390, with 35,816 patients declared cured, according to data released on Tuesday by the Strategic Communication Group. In the same interval, a record 58 deaths were registered, the death toll now standing at 3,367. 490 patients are in intensive care. Also on Tuesday, the National Institute of Public Health announced that, in the week of August 17-23, over 30% of all COVID-19 cases were registered in Bucharest, Prahova (south), Iasi, (east) Bihor (west) and Timiş (southwest). At the same time, almost 31% of the total deaths were registered in Bucharest, Bihor, Argeş, Buzău and Iaşi. According to the Institute, 1 in 18 cases was medical staff. 79.8% of all deaths were in people over 60, and 59.7% in men. The NIPH states that 94.8% of those who died from the new coronavirus had at least one underlying condition.
PANDEMIC More than 23.8 million cases of new coronavirus infection have been confirmed worldwide, according to worldometers.info. Some 810,000 people have died of Covid-19 so far. The coronavirus pandemic continues to wreak havoc around the world, but WHO data show a slowdown in the spread of the virus in most regions, especially in the Americas. Exceptions are Southeast Asia and the eastern Mediterranean. In many European countries, school would resume next week. This is also the case in Poland and the United Kingdom, where, although the number of infections has started to increase again, the authorities say they see no reason to postpone the start of the new school year. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson addressed the parents, asking them to send their children to school. “(…) its vitally important that we get our children back into the classroom to learn and to be with their friends. Nothing will have a greater effect on the life chances of our children than returning to school ” were the words of Boris Johnson, after a recent survey showed that almost half of the Brits do not agree with the return of the little ones to class rooms. In France, where schools reopen next week, authorities have developed several guidelines and several scenarios are being considered. For students older than 11 years, as well as for teachers, the mask is mandatory.
BACCALAUREATE In Romania, the autumn session of the baccalaureate exam continued, on Tuesday, with the mandatory test on the chosen profile. On Wednesday, the candidates will take the optional test, and on Thursday, the test in their mother tongue, which will be taken only by high school graduates belonging to national minorities. Next week, the equivalence and recognition of language and digital skills will take place, and the results will be posted on September 2. On the same day, it will be possible to submit appeals, and the final results will be made public on September 5. More than 42,700 young people registered for this exam, almost 60% of whom finished high-school this year. On the other hand, Romania is preparing for the reopening of schools in about 3 weeks, a goal for which the government has allocated 175 million euros. The money will be used to purchase tablets, protective equipment or disinfectants and other things needed in the context of the coronavirus pandemic.
INVESTMENT The Armys endowment program must generate a relaunch of the Romanian defense industry, both through domestic companies and through partner companies, Prime Minister Ludovic Orban said on Tuesday. He participated in Petreşti (Dâmboviţa County, south), in the inauguration of the construction works of a truck assembly factory in Romania of the Italian company IVECO. According to the prime minister, it is an investment worth about 50 million euros and will create 200 jobs in the first phase. Ludovic Orban welcomed the Italian companys decision to establish itself as a regional center for Central and Eastern Europe, in Romania, in Bucharest. Italy is Romanias second largest trading partner, after Germany, and is a friend both in economic cooperation and in other areas of activity. There is an extremely important relationship of friendship and partnership between the two countries, Orban said.
FOOTBALL CFR Cluj will play against the Croatian champions Dinamo Zagreb in a home match on Wednesday in the second round of the Champions League preliminaries. The Romanians secured a 2-0 away win against Floriana in Malta and have thus qualified for the competitions second preliminary round. On Thursday, the three representatives of Romania in the Europa League will have their debut, also in the first preliminary round. FC Botoșani (northeast) will play, away from home, against FC Ordabasy, from Kazakhstan, the Bucharest players from FCSB will take on the Armenians from FC Shirak, and CS Universitatea Craiova (south) will play against FC Locomotive Tbilisi, in Georgia.
TENNIS The pair made up of the Romanian tennis player Horia Tecău and the Dutch Jean-Julien Rojer has qualified for the quarterfinals of the doubles event of the ATP Masters 1,000 tournament in Cincinnati, hosted this year by the Flushing Meadows arenas in New York, with over $ 4,200,000 in prize money. The two defeated, on Monday, the couple Raven Klaasen (South Africa) / Oliver Marach (Austria) 6-3, 6-4. The next opponents will be the winners of the game between the Americans Steve Johnson / Austin Krajicek and the second seed Lukasz Kubot (Poland) / Marcelo Melo (Brazil). (M.Ignatescu)
