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Coronavirus epidemic advances in Mexico, more than 25,000 dead

In almost three months, the number of confirmed cases of contamination with the coronavirus reaches “202 951 to date”, while “we deplore the death of 25 060 people as a result of the epidemic”, said Thursday José Luis Alomía, director general of the epidemiology department of the Mexican Ministry of Health, during a press conference.

As of Wednesday, 24,324 people have died and 196,847 people have been registered. The first three cases of contamination in Mexico were noted on February 28. In the last week of March, the government suspended non-essential activities. On June 1, the reopening of these activities began gradually.

Also read: Over 70,000 deaths from coronavirus in Latin America and the Caribbean

Mexico City remains in a maximum state of emergency. Mexico has a contamination rate of 159 per 100,000 inhabitants, according to figures presented this Thursday at the press conference. The country, which has 127 million inhabitants, is in seventh position for the number of deaths linked to the epidemic.

Few screening tests

The numbers of deaths and contaminations linked to the virus greatly exceed the 8,000 maximum deaths predicted by the Ministry of Health, which has meanwhile revised its estimates upwards with an announced death toll of 35,000. This would place the country ahead of France, Spain and Italy.

Among the 36 countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Mexico is the one that performs the least number of screening tests, with 3.15 per 1,000 inhabitants.

Increase in poverty

As a result, leftist President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) estimates that one million jobs will be lost this year due to the health crisis. But, in the process, he promises to create a double and offers as many microloans to those who request it.

Also read: The number of unemployed will increase considerably in Latin America

The National Council for the Evaluation of Social Development Policies (Coneval) predicts that the number of poor will reach 62.2 million in 2020, compared to 52.4 million in 2018. “People who had managed to lift themselves out of poverty , plunge back into it. And those that have never been, become so, “explains Gonzalo Hernández, director of the Multidimensional Poverty Network, who recommends comparing the situation in Mexico with that of other countries.

The Institute of Statistics predicts that extreme poverty in Mexico could drop from 11.1% to 15.9% in 2020.

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