TIRANA – North Macedonia has registered 1,421 coronavirus cases as of Tuesday afternoon, up from 1,399 a day earlier, with the death toll rising to 71. This was announced by health minister Venko Filipce as quoted by SeeNews on April 29.
So far, 589 patients have recovered from the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), Filipce said in a Twitter post on Tuesday.
North Macedonia’s government last week decided to shorten the curfew hours that were imposed to suppress the spread of the coronavirus. However, group gatherings remain prohibited and face protection is compulsory in all public places.
As of Thursday, the daily curfew starts at 7 pm instead of 4 pm. Citizens over the age of 67 are allowed to go out of their homes only between 5 am and 12 pm, whereas people under 18 are allowed to go out only between 1 pm and 7 pm.
The government announced on Tuesday that tougher movement restrictions will be in effect from May 1 to May 3, with the curfew starting at 2 pm and ending at 5 am the following day. The elderly will be allowed to go out from 5 am to 11 am, while young people under 18 can go out between 12 pm and 2 pm.
In the meantime in the drive to grapple with the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic North Macedonia is expected to enter a recession in 2020, with the country forecast to experience negative growth. The portal miragenews.com said on Wednesday that the growth in the country for 2020 is forecast to be between -1.4 and -3.2 percent, according to the World Bank’s latest Regular Economic Report.
The Western Balkans region is expected to enter a recession in 2020, with all six countries forecast to experience negative growth as they continue to grapple with the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Regional growth in the Western Balkans is forecast to be between -3 and -5.6 percent, according to miragenews.com.
“The magnitude of the recession depends on the duration of the pandemic in Europe. While the economic impact of the ongoing pandemic in the region is difficult to forecast, there is little doubt that this pandemic is wreaking havoc on lives around the region – taxing health care systems, paralyzing economic activity, and undermining the wellbeing of people,” says Linda Van Gelder, World Bank Country Director for the Western Balkans. /argumentum.al
