BEIJING (AFP) – Almost 90 per cent of people in China’s third most populous province have now been infected with Covid-19, a top official said yesterday, as the country battles an unprecedented surge in cases.
Director of the health commission for central Henan province Kan Quancheng told a press conference “as of January 6, 2023, the province’s Covid infection rate is 89 per cent”.
With a population of 99.4 million, the figures suggest about 88.5 million people in Henan may now have been infected.
Visits to fever clinics peaked on December 19, Kan said, “after which it showed a continuous down-ward trend”.
China is battling a surge in cases following its decision last month to lift years of lockdowns, quarantines and mass testing that had hammered its economy and sparked protests.
And Beijing is determined to press on with its re-opening, on Sunday lifting mandatory quarantine for all international arrivals and opening its border with the semi-autonomous southern city of Hong Kong. But infections are expected to soar as the country celebrates Lunar new year later this month, with millions expected to travel from big cities to visit vulnerable older relatives in the countryside.
In the first wave of pre-holiday travel, official data showed 34.7 million people travelled domestically on Saturday – up by more than a third compared to last year, according to state media.
