March 28, 2018 UPDATE
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Newsroom, 28.03.2018, 20:27
CONDOLENCES Romanian president Klaus Iohannis has conveyed a message of condolences to Russian president Vladimir Putin for the victims of the shopping mall fire in Kemerovo. On Wednesday, the “Colectiv GTG 3010” Association paid homage, at the Russian Embassy in Bucharest, to the victims of Wednesday’s fire in Siberia. “Colectiv GTG 3010” was set up after a devastating fire ripped through the Bucharest-based Colectiv club, on the night of October 30, 2015, which took 64 lives, and brings together close friends and families of the victims as well as survivors of the disaster. A day of national mourning was declared in Russia on Wednesday in memory of the victims of Sunday’s fire in Kemerovo. Sources with the local authorities say 64 people died in the fire, of which 41 children. President Vladimir Putin has pledged that all those proven guilty will be identified and punished, irrespective of the positions they hold and he urged people not to believe rumours propagated on social networks, according to which people died in their hundreds in the fire.
HEALTHCARE According to Romania’s health minister Sorina Pintea, as of Thursday, the immunoglobulin deliveries in this country will be constant and the quantities requested through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism are to arrive in Romania by the end of April. 1,000 immunoglobulin doses entered Romania on Wednesday; they had been purchased by the Health Ministry’s medicine supplier from foreign producers. Three weeks ago, Romania requested international aid, as it had run out of immunoglobulin doses. Romania has also resorted to the NATO Mechanism for immunoglobulin. The discontinuous supply of immunoglobulin has been caused by the withdrawal from the market of producers who provided over 80% of the necessary doses in Romania. Immunoglobulin contains antibodies, which are proteins made by the immune system to fight antigens, such as bacteria, viruses, and toxins.
MEDALS Romanian athlete Andreea Penciu on Wednesday walked away with silver from the snatch event and with bronze from the total event of the 58-kilogram category contest of the European Weightlifting Championship held in Izvorani, southern Romania. Another Romanian, Maria Grigoriu, clinched bronze in the clean and jerk event of the same category. Romania has so far obtained 10 medals in the present edition of the championship. Elena Andries has won three gold medals (snatch, clean and jerk, total), Ilie Ciotoiu two bronze (clean and jerk, total) and Ionut Ilie also two bronze medals (clean and jerk, total). The European Weightlifting Championship are underway in Izvorani, southern Romania, between March 26th and April 1st. Romania also hosted the competition in 1972 and 2009.
STATISTICS The unemployment rate in Romania in the last quarter of 2017 stood at 4.7%, just like in the same period of 2016. Data released by the National Institute of Statistics, INS, on Wednesday, show the highest unemployment rate of over 21% was registered among youngsters. In the same time-span, Romania’s active population accounted for some nine million people, of which 8.5 million were employed, the rest being jobless. In another move, the average number of pensioners in Romania exceeded five million last year, that is lower than in the previous year. The average pension increased by some 13%, exceeding 1,000 lei (215 Euros), data issued by INS also show.
FLU The death toll of the flu affecting Romania had reached 120, the National Center for the Supervision and Control of Transmissible Diseases announced on Wednesday. Almost all the victims were suffering from chronic diseases and had not been vaccinated. According to the Romanian Health Minister Sorina Pintea, we cannot speak about a flu epidemic in Romania at present.
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