Twenty people have been killed by the disease in Ukraine, adding three people since the previous update on the morning of April 1. Thirteen people recovered from the virus as of late April 1, adding three more since the morning of April 1.
Interior Ministry: Ukraine’s COVID-19 epidemic will peak between April 15-25. If this prediction is correct, the country will have to extend the nationwide quarantine until at least May 15, Deputy Interior Minister Anton Gerashchenko wrote on Facebook on April 1.
Poll: Most Ukrainians support imposing curfew amid coronavirus quarantine. The poll results, published on April 1, indicate that as much as 58% of the country’s population would endorse placing a curfew on cities.
Some 60% of Ukrainians are suffering financial losses from economic shutdown. More than half of Ukrainians have been earning less money since Ukraine imposed a nationwide quarantine meant to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus across the country.
Business News –
President Zelensky and German Chancellor Angela Merkel have agreed on a 150 million euro loan from Germany to help Ukraine in its fight against COVID-19. The funds are allocated under a German state loan program, seperate from 40 million euros from the European Investment Bank, and 80 million from the European Commission that have already been agreed. It is understood that the funds will likely be for healthcare and social payments.
Meanwhile, Ukraine seeks to arrange a $150 million loan with the IBRD to increase social payments to Ukrainians. The Cabinet of Ministers has approved a draft decree for the president to send a delegation of Ukraine to negotiate with the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) on the provision of a $150 million loan to be used to increase social payments.
The Silpo supermarket chain has allocated UAH 100 million (about $3.6 million) to purchase medical equipment and personal protective equipment (PPE) for medical personnel in Ukraine as part of the fight against coronavirus. It’s one of the largest donations by a private Ukrainian company yet, but Silpo is not alone. Among other donations, Vodafone Ukraine said it donated $1 million and bought 4 lung ventilators, PrivatBank said it has bought 28 ventilators, grain giant Kernel donated about $3 million, while the mining and metals company Ferrexpo donated $2.5 million. But the supermarket chain Epicenter appears to be leading the pack in Ukraine, with donations that total almost $5.4 million so far.
Read the full Ukraine Business Update
