Weekly average infection rate remains well below WHO danger mark
Tribune Desk
Publish : 08 Jan 2022, 11:49 PMUpdate : 08 Jan 2022, 11:54 PM
The government has urged the public to stay calm as the Covid-19 infection rate in the country remains under control despite a recent uptick in cases.
As a result of the gradual increase in the infection rate since January 1, the National Technical Advisory Committee (NTAC) on Covid-19 has suggested stricter guidelines to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
The country on Friday for the first time in nearly four months saw the daily infection rate exceed the 5% mark. The infection rate reached 5.67% on Friday, climbing further to 5.79% on Saturday.
However, both the daily and weekly averages of the infection rate remain well under the 5% threshold.
The daily infection rate had last crossed the 5% mark on September 20 last year.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the Covid situation is considered to be under control in a country if the test-positivity rate remains below 5% for at least two weeks.
“Covid infections are on the rise in many countries but it is still under control in Bangladesh,” Health Minister Zahid Maleque told reporters in Manikganj on Saturday.
He said there were no plans for the country to go into lockdown right now, but the government might reconsider if the infection rate continued to rise.
Bangladesh in the 24 hours till Saturday morning logged 1,116 cases. This is the third consecutive day that the daily caseload was higher than 1,100.
Prior to Thursday, Bangladesh last recorded 1,100 cases in a single day on September 29, 2021.
The weekly scene
As of Friday, the weekly average test positivity rate was just 3.90%, up from 2.13% recorded in the week starting December 25, 2021. The figure in the previous week (December 18-24) was even lower.
After confirming its first three Covid cases on March 8, 2020, Bangladesh saw the daily caseload and body count peak around mid-June last year. The country recorded more than 5,000 cases a day for the next two months, with the highest 16,230 cases confirmed on July 28.
At one point, the daily infection rate averaged 30% or more, with the highest 33% test-positivity rate registered on July 24. In comparison, the daily infection rate of around 2% in the last two months of 2021 was relatively tame.
The latest surge in the pandemic in Bangladesh coincides with increasing infections in many countries across the world following the detection of the Omicron variant in November last year. Neighbouring India has witnessed a dramatic increase in Covid-19 cases over the past few days.
WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Thursday said the Omicron variant should not be categorised as “mild”, even though it appears to be less severe than the Delta variant of the disease.
Bangladesh has so far recorded 21 Omicron cases, according to GISAID.
NTAC urges for stricter guidelines
The National Technical Advisory Committee on Covid-19 in a statement on Friday said the country should adopt stricter health guidelines considering the surge in cases in India and other countries across the globe.
The committee recommended banning all social gatherings, including weddings, political and religious functions. It suggested conducting mobile court drives to ensure that health guidelines were followed.
It also suggested a return to work and meetings online, and reiterated its calls to speed up the vaccination program and increase the capacity of hospitals.
Covid-19 uptick: Nothing to panic about yet
Weekly average infection rate remains well below WHO danger mark
The government has urged the public to stay calm as the Covid-19 infection rate in the country remains under control despite a recent uptick in cases.
As a result of the gradual increase in the infection rate since January 1, the National Technical Advisory Committee (NTAC) on Covid-19 has suggested stricter guidelines to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
The country on Friday for the first time in nearly four months saw the daily infection rate exceed the 5% mark. The infection rate reached 5.67% on Friday, climbing further to 5.79% on Saturday.
However, both the daily and weekly averages of the infection rate remain well under the 5% threshold.
The daily infection rate had last crossed the 5% mark on September 20 last year.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the Covid situation is considered to be under control in a country if the test-positivity rate remains below 5% for at least two weeks.
“Covid infections are on the rise in many countries but it is still under control in Bangladesh,” Health Minister Zahid Maleque told reporters in Manikganj on Saturday.
He said there were no plans for the country to go into lockdown right now, but the government might reconsider if the infection rate continued to rise.
Bangladesh in the 24 hours till Saturday morning logged 1,116 cases. This is the third consecutive day that the daily caseload was higher than 1,100.
Prior to Thursday, Bangladesh last recorded 1,100 cases in a single day on September 29, 2021.
The weekly scene
As of Friday, the weekly average test positivity rate was just 3.90%, up from 2.13% recorded in the week starting December 25, 2021. The figure in the previous week (December 18-24) was even lower.
After confirming its first three Covid cases on March 8, 2020, Bangladesh saw the daily caseload and body count peak around mid-June last year. The country recorded more than 5,000 cases a day for the next two months, with the highest 16,230 cases confirmed on July 28.
At one point, the daily infection rate averaged 30% or more, with the highest 33% test-positivity rate registered on July 24. In comparison, the daily infection rate of around 2% in the last two months of 2021 was relatively tame.
The latest surge in the pandemic in Bangladesh coincides with increasing infections in many countries across the world following the detection of the Omicron variant in November last year. Neighbouring India has witnessed a dramatic increase in Covid-19 cases over the past few days.
WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Thursday said the Omicron variant should not be categorised as “mild”, even though it appears to be less severe than the Delta variant of the disease.
Bangladesh has so far recorded 21 Omicron cases, according to GISAID.
NTAC urges for stricter guidelines
The National Technical Advisory Committee on Covid-19 in a statement on Friday said the country should adopt stricter health guidelines considering the surge in cases in India and other countries across the globe.
The committee recommended banning all social gatherings, including weddings, political and religious functions. It suggested conducting mobile court drives to ensure that health guidelines were followed.
It also suggested a return to work and meetings online, and reiterated its calls to speed up the vaccination program and increase the capacity of hospitals.