KEY FIGURES

5.5M CONFIRMED COVID-19 CASES IN LATIN AMERICA & THE CARIBBEAN AS OF 9 AUGUST

REGIONAL: COVID-19

Cases are referenced from PAHO/WHO 9 August COVID-19 Report - https://bit.ly/2O25YQw

As of 9 August, PAHO/WHO report 5,519,857 cases and 218,708 deaths in Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as 3,740,226 recovered cases.

KEY FIGURES

$5.9B IN REMITTANCES TO GUATEMALA FROM JAN-JUL 2020, 1.4% MORE THAN JAN-JUL 2019

CENTRAL AMERICA: COVID-19

PANAMA

A group of mostly Haitian migrants stranded in Darin, near the eastern border with Colombia, damaged emergency camps in protest, setting fire to shelter tents and the camps medical station. Protesters are threatening to burn more camps in Darin, home to some 2,000 migrants, if they are not transferred to the western border with Costa Rica to continue their journey, despite the border closure due to the pandemic.

The violence forcibly displaced local families as well. Authorities detained 12 migrants over the fires and announced they will deport any migrant detained for disorderly conduct.

GUATEMALA

The Central Bank reports that remittances totalled US$5.9 billion from January to July, a 1.4 per cent increase from the $5.8 billion sent during the same period in 2019, despite the ongoing pandemic. Remittances increased slightly in June and July following drastic declines from March to May. Remittances are a major source of foreign income in Guatemala, especially for rural families; 2019 remittances totalled $10.5 billion, just under the $11 billion in exports.

KEY FIGURES

3.1M STUDENTS IN BOLIVIA AFFECTED BY SUSPENSION OF SCHOOL YEAR DUE TO COVID-19

SOUTH AMERICA: COVID-19

BOLIVIA

The Government suspended the rest of Bolivias school year over the COVID-19 pandemic and its threat to the health of students and faculty, affecting some 3.1 million students, 88 per cent of whom are in the public system. The Government said they could not guarantee free and universal education as most rural areas do not have adequate internet access. The UN in Bolivia is expressing concern over the measure and is urging the Government to find formal alternatives to keep schooling on track and guarantee the right to education.

PERU

The Government is exempting qualified foreign medics and nurses from validating their degrees in Peru a bid to provide overrun health services with additional staffing and support.

The exemption will allow those among the 830,000 Venezuelans in Peru with qualified degrees support medical workers, who account for 7,000 cases and 200 deaths. Those qualified will be able to earn income outside a battered informal economy that has prompted many who are unable to earn livelihoods to return to Venezuela.

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Latin America & The Caribbean - Weekly Situation Update (3-9 August 2020) as of 10 August 2020 - Bahamas - ReliefWeb