Italian PM Giuseppe Conte to unveil reopening plan of country by end of this week

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte on April 21 announced that he would reveal the reopening plan for the country by the end of the weekend. Conte said that the steps to ease restrictions will be announced in order to avoid further damage to the economy. Italy is the worst affected country in Europe, reporting the highest number of deaths in the region. The lockdown in Italy was imposed on March 9 and was extended twice in the period. The lockdown in Italy is scheduled to end on May 3. 

Read: 'Opinion Breeds Ignorance': JK Rowling Quotes Hippocrates As Protesters Swarm US Streets

Coronavirus cases in Italy are decreasing and on April 20, the nation reported a decline in the numbers for the first time. The plan to gradually reopen the economy is most likely to be applied from May 4, Conte said. The prime minister said that he would have announced the reopening of everything but added that it would only hamper the containment efforts that have been taken so far to control the epidemic in the country. 

Read: South Korea: People Return To Work, Public Places As Country Relaxes Lockdown Restrictions

According to data by Wordometer, Italy has recorded 1,81,228 confirmed cases so far, of which 24,114 people have lost their lives. There are currently 1,08,237 active infections in the country as of April 21 with 2, 573 patients under critical condition. Italy has successfully treated 48,877 COVID-19 positive patients to date. 

Read: Australia Calls For Review Of Circumstances That Led To Start Of COVID-19 Pandemic

Coronavirus outbreak

The coronavirus outbreak has infected over 2.50 million people globally and has killed nearly 1,72,000 patients since it first broke out in December 2019. The virus is believed to have originated from a seafood market in the Chinese city of Wuhan, the initial epicentre of the disease, where animals were reportedly being traded illegally. Other countries that are currently the worst affected are the United States, Spain, France, Iran, and the United Kingdom, where the death tolls have reached the five-digit number. 

Read: UN Urges Countries To Protect LGBT+ People Against Discrimination Amid COVID-19 Crisis

(Image Credit: AP)