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Guyana + 1 more

Guyana: Monthly Summary of R4V Activities, January 2021

Attachments

Situation

• By the end of January 2021, Guyana registered 7,641 total COVID-19 infections, 874 active cases and 176 deaths. Several villages, including New Amsterdam in Region 6, Waramdong in Region 7, St Cuthbert's Mission in Region 4 and Moraikobai in Region 5, saw spikes in COVID cases and remain under strict monitoring by the Ministry of Health.

• International airports became fully operational, requiring that COVID-19 PCR tests be done within 3 days before leaving and entering Guyana, and curfews were extended. The local population continued to breach curfews with cases of bars and restaurants operating without permission being reported.

• Schools partially re-opened for children preparing for exams, subsequently, 45 students and 13 teachers tested positive for the virus. Many were asymptomatic and were quarantined to prevent further spread. Monitoring schools, teachers and students remained challenging, as most of them use public transportation and are from areas currently showing spikes in transmission.

• Socio-economic impacts resulting in loss of livelihoods, increased basic needs related to shelter/rent, utilities, food and NFIs, continue to be noted, particularly in remote areas among refugees and migrants and host community members.

• R4V partners indicated gaps in essential health supplies to combat the rise in virus cases. Additional expertise is needed to operate a mobile COVID-19 hospital that was recently opened.

• In the later part of January, Venezuelan navy vessel detained two vessels that were fishing in Guyana’s exclusive economic zone, the latest dispute in a long-running border conflict between the two South American nations.