Busy street in Caracas, Venezuela with most people wearing face masks. File photo.
Caracas, May 1, 2022 (OrinocoTribune.com)—Saturday, April 30, Venezuela’s Vice President Delcy Rodríguez announced that 20 new cases of COVID-19 were registered in Venezuela in the previous 24 hours, in addition to the death of a 90-year-old woman in Aragua state.
During the month of April only 27 COVID-19-related deaths were reported across Venezuela. The pandemic has claimed more than six million deaths worldwide, including the tragic loss of over one million lives in the United States alone. Brazil has registered over 663,000 COVID-related deaths, India over 523,000, Russia over 375,000, and Mexico more than 324,000, according to the Worldometers.info website.
Meanwhile, Venezuela has reported only 5,708 deaths during the more than two years of the pandemic, equivalent to 202 deaths per million inhabitants, the third-lowest ratio in the entire Western hemisphere. Nicaragua has registered the least, with 33 deaths per million. These numbers pale in comparison to the 6,294 deaths per million inhabitants reported in Peru, for example, or 3,081 in Brazil, 3,051 in the United States, and 2,962 in Chile, according to the same service.
1/5 La Comisión Presidencial para la Prevención, Atención y Control de la #COVID19 informa al pueblo venezolano que en las últimas horas un total de 20 nuevos contagios se detectaron en nuestro país; todos por transmisión comunitaria. pic.twitter.com/OIitpAv5XA
— Delcy Rodríguez (@delcyrodriguezv) May 1, 2022
Of the 20 new cases reported in Venezuela, all were from community transmission, including four in Monagas state and four in Yaracuy state. Seven of these were men, and thirteen were women.
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4/5 Estas son las estadísticas generales de la pandemia en Venezuela:
– Total de contagios: 522.325
– Pacientes recuperados: 515.675 (99%)
– Casos activos actuales: 941
– Total de fallecidos: 5.709 pic.twitter.com/cuR2dd0xVe— Delcy Rodríguez (@delcyrodriguezv) May 1, 2022
Overall, 522,325 COVID-19 cases have been registered in Venezuela during 776 days of the pandemic. Venezuela’s recovery rate stands at 99%, and includes only 941 active cases, of whom 46 are being treated in private hospitals, 231 in public hospitals or CDIs, and 664 in supervised community settings.
In the image below, taken from Venezuela’s official Patria COVID-19 website, one can see the dramatic decrease in COVID-19-related deaths in recent weeks in comparison to the peak reported on April 23, 2021, when 22 people died during the worst wave of the pandemic in Venezuela.
Venezuela has had several advantages dealing with the COVID-19 crisis. Firstly, the responsible and prompt response of the Maduro administration that united all Venezuelans, regardless of political affiliation, in the acceptance of a common responsibility to fight the pandemic and to respect government policies pertaining to the disease.
Secondly, the isolation imposed as a consequence of the United States and European blockade meant that limited international flights were coming and going from Venezuela. This played a significant role, in addition to gasoline scarcity also as a result of the blockade, reducing peoples’ mobility and thus the chances of virus propagation.
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Despite its successes, the heroic Venezuelan battle against COVID-19 advanced in the midst of a powerful smear campaign and blockade against Venezuela, launched by the United States and the European Union. In the international field, the solidarity and friendship of China, Russia, Cuba, Turkey, and Iran were key to overcoming the criminal blockade and providing access to tests, medical equipment, and then vaccines.
The COVID-19 battle is not over yet, as new variants continue to be discovered, a direct result of the irresponsible behavior of many governments in the global North that have eased biosafety measures. In Venezuela, despite the encouraging COVID-19 statistics, the entire country is still on guard to respond quickly to possible new waves.
During the last week alone, according to Worldometers.info, 1,810 COVID-19 related deaths were reported in the United States, 1,333 in the UK, 1,267 in Germany, 1,129 in Russia, 924 in Italy, 902 in France and 866 in Brazil. Germany and Brazil reported more deaths than the previous week.
Featured image: Busy street in Caracas, Venezuela with most people wearing face masks. File photo.
Special for Orinoco Tribune by staff
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