According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Saint Kitts and Nevis, the Marshall Islands, Haiti, E-Swatini, Honduras, Paraguay, and Guatemala have all expressed support for Taiwan’s participation in the WHO at the WHO executive board meeting, which will conclude on Jan. 29.

France has also spoken on behalf of the EU, calling on the WHO not to leave out any region.

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QUITO, Feb 1 (Reuters) – At least 24 people perished in a landslide in Ecuador’s capital Quito, and 12 others were missing, Mayor Santiago Guarderas said on Tuesday, as rescue teams searched homes and streets covered by mud following the worst deluge in nearly two decades.

The torrential rains on Monday night caused a build-up of water in a gorge near the working class neighborhoods of La Gasca and La Comuna, sending mud and rocks down on residences and affecting electricity provision.

The country’s disaster management agency said 48 people were injured.

“We saw this immense black river that was dragging along everything, we had to climb the walls to escape,” said resident Alba Cotacachi, who evacuated her two young daughters from their home. “We are looking for the disappeared.”

Karen Maite, 16, is helped by rescue crews in an area of a landslide in Quito, Ecuador, February 1, 2022. REUTERS/Jonatan Rosas

Footage obtained by Reuters showed a man struggling to free himself from the muddy waters rushing down a residential street. Reuters witnesses said the man was swept away as residents screamed for help.

Other videos showed a torrent sweeping away trees, vehicles, dumpsters and even electricity poles, while some people were rescued from the muddy water by neighbors.

Authorities have not ruled out the possibility of further landslides. The mayor’s office has set up shelters for affected families and has started clearing streets in the city.

Ecuador is facing heavy rains in several areas, which have caused rivers to overflow and affected hundreds of homes and roads.

Rains in Quito on Monday were equivalent to 75 liters per square meter, the highest in nearly two decades.

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HOSPITALIZATIONS 23 TIMES HIGHER FOR UNVACCINATED: CDC

Unvaccinated adults were 23 times more likely to be hospitalized with COVID-19 during the omicron wave than adults who were vaccinated and boosted, according to a new study that further highlights the importance of coronavirus vaccination and booster shots.

The study, released Tuesday, from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found by far the highest rates of cases and hospitalizations among unvaccinated people, followed by vaccinated but not boosted people, with vaccinated and boosted people having the most protection.

The study used data from Los Angeles County as of Jan. 8, during the omicron wave.

Hospitalizations were 5.3 times higher among the unvaccinated than vaccinated but not boosted.

“Efforts to promote COVID-19 vaccination and boosters are critical to preventing COVID-19–associated hospitalizations and severe outcomes,” the study states.

While the largest effects were in reducing hospitalizations, the study also shows that vaccines and boosters lowered the chance of getting infected at all. The protection is not total, meaning there are still frequent breakthrough cases, but the severity is far lower among people who are vaccinated and boosted than among the unvaccinated.

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Pfizer begins FDA vax filing for kids under 5

© Pfizer Media Relations via AP

Pfizer said Tuesday that it has begun applying for authorization for its COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 6 months to 4 years from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The announcement marks a step forward in the process for the only age group for whom COVID-19 vaccines are not yet authorized.

The wrinkle: The application is for two doses, though the company said it realized three doses will eventually be needed. Pfizer said it is applying now at the request of the FDA, so the agency can start the process on authorizing two doses. The theory is authorization could later be expanded to three doses once the data becomes available.

“As hospitalizations of children under 5 due to COVID-19 have soared, our mutual goal with the FDA is to prepare for future variant surges and provide parents with an option to help protect their children from this virus,” Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said.

“Ultimately, we believe that three doses of the vaccine will be needed for children 6 months through 4 years of age to achieve high levels of protection against current and potential future variants. If two doses are authorized, parents will have the opportunity to begin a COVID-19 vaccination series for their children while awaiting potential authorization of a third dose.”

Timeline: Pfizer said in December that the vaccine application for children under 5 could take as long as the middle of 2022, given that the immune response from two doses was not sufficient and a third dose needed to be tested. It said there were no safety concerns.

The latest move could significantly move up the timeline to begin the process with the first two shots, with a third following later.

The FDA announced Tuesday that its vaccine advisory committee would meet on Feb. 15, indicating that a final decision could come fairly soon after that.

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No signs BA.2 subvariant more severe: WHO

© Getty Images

The World Health Organization (WHO) said Tuesday that the new BA.2 subvariant of the omicron strain of COVID-19 is no more severe than omicron’s original strain.

“There’s no indication that there’s a change in severity,” Maria Van Kerkhove, the WHO’s technical lead for COVID-19, said at Tuesday’s press briefing.

She added that BA.2 has a “slight increase in growth rate” over BA.1, meaning the subvariant is slightly more transmissible than the omicron variant’s original strain.

“Beyond that, the data is really quite limited,” she said, noting that “most of the research that is available is on the subvariant BA.1.”

“BA.2 is one of the sublineages of omicron, so BA.2 is omicron, and it is a variant of concern,” Van Kerkhove explained. “It’s in the family of the variants of concern around omicron.”

“We need people to be aware that this virus is continuing to circulate and it’s continuing to evolve,” she added. “That’s why it’s really important that we take measures to reduce our exposure to this virus, whatever variant is circulating.”

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Tsunami-hit Tonga goes into lockdown

Tonga has gone into lockdown after recording two Covid-19 cases among port workers helping distribute international aid in the wake of the volcanic eruption and tsunami that devastated the Pacific country last month.

The cases seem to confirm fears among Tongan officials that the arrival of aid could bring an outbreak of the virus, which could represent a bigger danger to Tonga than the tsunami.

The prime minister, Siaosi Sovaleni, said the lockdown, which began at 6pm on Wednesday, will be open-ended, but will last for at least 48 hours, at which point it will be reviewed.

Tonga is still reeling from the eruption of the undersea Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano on 15 January, which sent gas 20km into the air, prompted a tsunami, with waves reaching 15 metres (49ft), and blanketed the country in ash.

Read the full story from our Pacific editor Kate Lyons here.

Three people died in Tonga as a result of the tsunami and the government estimates that 84% of people in the country have been affected by it. Photograph: Tonga Red Cross Society/Reuters

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WORLD  STATS

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CHARLESTOWN, NEVIS — The Nevis Co-operative Credit Union (NCCU) Limited, the oldest credit union in the Federation, has launched a calendar of year-long celebratory activities that will be held to mark the institution’s 50^th anniversary, having been registered on July 25, 1972.

“Today begins a very significant celebration for the Nevis Co-operative Credit Union Limited,” said NCCU President, Mrs Vernesia Walters on Monday January 31, during the launch ceremony which was held at the Ingle Blackett Conference Room, Nevis Credit Union Business Complex in Charlestown.

“It is a time when we cast our gaze at the birth, growth, development and maturity of the Nevis Co-operative Credit Union Limited and its impact over the past 50 years on the lives of our members and their families,” observed Mrs Walters

According to the President, it is time for people to come into greater recognition that the Nevis Co-operative Credit Union Limited, an indigenous institution, is a hallmark of the Nevisian economy.

She noted that it is time to look back at the transformation of communities where the ordinary man or woman could proudly own a piece of the rock, become an entrepreneur, advance his/her education, improve his/her lifestyle, address medical needs, explore the world and fulfil visions, goals and dreams.

“It is a time when we as a people celebrate economic independence and teach the next generations the values of hard work, integrity, collaboration, cooperation, contentment, compassion, voluntarism, perseverance and endurance,” said Mrs Walters. “These values form the bedrock of this institution and the wider Credit Union Movement as they justify our very existence.”

She advised: “So, as we celebrate, let us embrace the journey and renew our commitments to the vision and mission of this great institution.”

Giving a history of the Nevis Co-operative Credit Union Limited, General Manager Mr Sydney Newton noted that the first credit union commenced operations on Nevis in 1965 under the astute stewardship of the late Mr Wilbert Edmund Ingle Blackett, pioneer of co-operativism in the then British colony of St. Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla. It was intended solely for the employees of the Civil Service.

“In 1966, the bond was opened for the residents of Charlestown and the Credit Union was registered as the Charlestown Co-operative Credit Union Limited,” noted Mr Newton. “And on July 25, 1972, the Charlestown Co-operative Credit Union opened its ‘bond’ to all the residents of Nevis and was registered as the Nevis Co-operative Credit Union Limited.”

He saluted pioneers of the Nevis Co-operative Credit Union who laboured hard to lay a solid foundation for the society, where during the first seven years of credit unionism on Nevis (1965-1972), which included the difficult years immediately following the MV Christena Disaster of 1970, they endured struggles as they sold the co-operative idea, which was at its infancy, to get acceptance and support.

According to Mr Newton, esteemed pioneers of the Nevis Co-operative Credit Union are Mr Ingle Blackett (Founder), Fr. John Wagland (1^st President), Mr Anthony Horner, Mr Spencer Byron, Mr Arthur Evelyn, Mrs Olvis Dyer, Ms Ann-Marie Caines, Mr Harry Maynard, Mrs Eileen Blackett, Mrs Cicely Grell-Hull, Mr Crispin Fahie, and Mr Spencer Howell (all deceased).

Those still around include, among others, Mr Warner Riviere, Pastor Eversley Pemberton, Mr Joseph Parry, Mrs Eugenie Hector, Ms Jeannette Grell-Hull, Mrs Jannette Claxton, Mr Wellington Parris, Mr Earl Parris, Mr Edred Ward, Mr Randy Moving (1^st Employee), Mrs Carmella Hanley, and Mrs Georgette Hanley. Present at the launch ceremony were pioneers Pastor Eversley Pemberton, Mr Edred Ward, and Mrs Georgette Hanley.

Chairman of the Anniversary Committee who is also the Vice President of the Nevis Co-operative Credit Union Limited, Mr Carl Tyson, noted that competitions were held among the members of staff for the submission of the 50^th Anniversary Celebrations slogan, and logo.

The winning 50^th Anniversary Celebrations slogan, ‘Consistency, Financial Security & Serving the Community 50 years of Development and Prosperity’ was submitted, Ms Zahvelisia Claxton, the Internal Auditor, while the winning logo was submitted by Ms Tamara Johnson, Administrative Assistant, Administration and Human Resource Department.

Mr Tyson also revealed the year-long 50^th Anniversary Calendar of events which will include, among others, distribution of care packages (January to December), production of commemorative documentaries on pioneers, members, staff, and scholarship holders (Jan-Dec), relay competition (April/May), commemorative magazine (July), worship service (July 24), essay competition for secondary schools students (October), quiz competition for primary schools students (November), and staff awards/gala (November/December).

The ceremony, which was attended by members of the various 50^th Anniversary Celebrations committees and streamed on NCCU’s Facebook page live, was chaired by NCCU’s Business Development and Marketing Officer, Ms Jaedee Caines. National Anthem was rendered by one of NCCU’s scholarship holders, Miss Sindodre Flemming, prayer was invoked by NCCU’s Accounting and Finance Manager, Pastor Londy Esdaile, while NCCU’s Internal Auditor, who is also the Recorder, Anniversary Committee, Ms Zahvelisia Claxton, gave the vote of thanks.

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