Week in Review: Women on the front lines of Covid-19, lifting France's lockdown and homemade homages to art
Issued on:
FRANCE 24 takes a three-part look at the women on the front lines of the Covid-19 fight in France and examines the details of the government plan to start lifting lockdown on May 11. We also spoke with Iceland's prime minister about her country's response to the pandemic and examined how art lovers, barred from museum visits, are recreating famous paintings in their homes.
ARTICLES
High hopes for Covid-19 vaccine developed by Oxford scientists
A vaccine against Covid-19 developed in Britain has shown very encouraging results on rhesus macaque monkeys, among the animals closest to humans. The scientists working on the vaccine estimate that if they can prove its effectiveness it could be ready as soon as September.
Conspiracy theories and fake news: Fighting the Covid-19 ‘infodemic’
Disinformation and conspiracy theories surrounding the global Covid-19 pandemic have flooded the internet – often with an additional nudge from world leaders and celebrities – presenting a challenge for health authorities, social media platforms, journalists and concerned citizens.
Key points of France’s strategy for lifting its nationwide Covid-19 lockdown
French Prime Minister Édouard Philippe has unveiled a strategy for bringing an end to the nationwide lockdown that is expected to come into force on May 11 provided certain key criteria are met.
Covid-19: How scientists are keeping politics out of the global race for a vaccine
As the world races to combat Covid-19, the United States is notably absent from multinational efforts. But scientists say that for now, the international research community is working together to do all it can.
As France releases thousands, can Covid-19 end chronic prison overcrowding?
The Covid-19 pandemic has required contingency measures that are on the verge of achieving a historic goal of human rights campaigners: bringing the overall population of French prisons down to the number they were designed for, not more. But the good news stops there.
Covid-19: France considers introducing series of ‘stop and go’ lockdowns
Alongside its plan to start lifting France's nationwide Covid-19 lockdown on May 11, the government is already anticipating how to reintroduce limits in the event of a second wave of the outbreak.
Women on the front line (1/3): Nurses are a patient's last contact before passing away
Every night, from their balconies and windows, the French publicly applaud healthcare workers and nursing staff on the front lines in the fight against Covid-19. In France, nearly 90 percent of nurses are female. How are these women coping with this unprecedented crisis? FRANCE 24 spoke to four of them.
Women on the front line (2/3): Cashiers face 'warlike' conditions working under Covid-19
With most workers being asked to stay home as France enters its seventh week in lockdown, the country's supermarket cashiers are also on the front lines of the pandemic. The profession, which is 90 percent female, has proven to be essential. But what price do these workers pay for being behind the till?
Women on the front line (3/3): For those teaching remotely, much of the job is reassuring parents
French schools have been closed since the nationwide lockdown began in mid-March. Almost 70 percent of primary and secondary teachers are women, and FRANCE 24 spoke to a group who are determined to keep teaching – even if they are not in the classroom.
VIDEO REPORTS
Hazardous material: Dealing with the vast medical waste of the Covid-19 pandemic
Across the world authorities have been scrambling to supply health workers with equipment needed to treat Covid-19 patients. But a new problem has emerged: How to deal with vast numbers of masks, gloves, gowns and other protective gear used by doctors and nurses, all of which could be contaminated by the virus.
INFOGRAPHICS
The great pandemics throughout history
From the Plague of Athens in 430 BC to modern-day HIV/AIDS, FRANCE 24 takes a look at the deadliest pandemics humanity has faced.
TV SHOWS ONLINE
Iceland 'gaining control' over Covid-19, prime minister tells FRANCE 24
Icelandic Prime Minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir discussed the outbreak of Covid-19 in Iceland, which thus far has around 1,800 cases and only 10 deaths. Jakobsdóttir explained the use of mass testing and contact tracing to fight the outbreak, and emphasised the importance of social-distancing rules.
Homemade masterpieces and solitary snaps: Imagery in a time of coronavirus
Art lovers deprived of wandering museums have taken up the "Getty Challenge" – recreating iconic paintings with household objects, inspired staging and a large dose of creativity. We also meet the French photographer capturing the ghostly aspects of Paris's deserted streets.
Film show: Spotlight on a controversial Michael Moore-produced environmental documentary
The week's film news including a new online festival, "We Are One: A Global Film Festival", plus the environmental documentary, "Planet of the Humans" and Martin Provost's, "How to Be a Good Wife".
Festival cancellations: A cultural void?
As thousands of festivals across the planet are cancelled because of the Covid-19 pandemic, Mathieu Jaton from the Montreux Jazz Festival and British comedian Mark Watson, who is organising a 24-hour online comedy festival, talk about the financial, cultural and societal implications of a summer without cultural gatherings.
In France's Basque Country, traditional skills are a family affair
We take you to France's Basque Country, where we meet Thérèse and Michel Riouspeyrous, wine producers in Irouléguy. Their two sons will one day take over the running of the vineyard. It's a similar story at the Goicoechea artisanal pottery, which will pass from father to son to perpetuate an old manufacturing technique. We end our journey at the Arrantzaleak restaurant in Ciboure, where father, mother and son are united by a love of food.
Covid-19: Economic slowdown weighs heavily on African development
The economic damage already done to Africa by the Covid-19 pandemic and its resulting lockdowns has been phenomenal and will set back the leaps in development the continent has seen over the decades. We speak to the OECD's Mario Pezzini about what needs to happen to salvage developmental progress. Also, people who beg on Johannesburg's streets are falling through the cracks and Senegal plows millions into food aid as many struggle to get by.
Amid rise in cases, Japan rethinks its carefree attitude to Covid-19
The number of Covid-19 cases is on the rise In Japan, where authorities have neither carried out mass testing nor imposed a lockdown. Even though a state of emergency was imposed on April 7, many Japanese are continuing to go to work while many shops, restaurants and bars remain open. But concern is spreading across the archipelago.
Could ending wildlife trade mean ending pandemics?
Conservationists have long been calling for an end to markets where wild animals are kept in confined and unsanitary conditions. These types of markets have been singled out as potential nests for viruses such as the one that causes Covid-19. Some say the pandemic is a watershed moment for curbing this trade. What are the risks if business continues as usual?
Daily newsletterReceive essential international news every morning
Subscribe