Here are the latest updates from Japan and beyond on the coronavirus outbreak:
A Japanese-style pub is crowded with customers near the Ameyoko shopping street in Tokyo's Ueno area on March 20, 2021, a day before the Japanese government ends the COVID-19 state of emergency in Tokyo and three neighboring prefectures. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
As of 10 p.m., Sunday, March 21
- Just under two-thirds of Japanese people think the government's rollout of coronavirus vaccines, which started in mid-February, has been slow, a weekend Kyodo News survey showed Sunday.
- Japan is considering requiring all inbound travelers to undergo a test for new variants of the coronavirus, health minister Norihisa Tamura said Sunday.
- An average daily sleeping time in 14 countries including Japan increased nearly 10 minutes in 2020 from the previous year, as people spent more time at home instead of staying out late at night under the coronavirus pandemic, a recent study showed.
As of 11 p.m., Saturday, March 20
- Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan on Saturday tested positive for the novel coronavirus, according to the country's health minister.
- The heads of the organizing bodies of the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics decided Saturday that this summer's games will be staged without overseas spectators due to the coronavirus pandemic.
- Japanese organizers of the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics have decided not to accept volunteers from abroad, officials familiar with the matter said Saturday, before they are expected to formally decide with their international counterparts that games will be staged without overseas spectators due to the coronavirus pandemic.
A pair of iconic golden statues of "shachihoko" -- a mythical half-tiger, half-fish creature -- are displayed on the premises of Nagoya Castle in Aichi Prefecture, central Japan, on March 20, 2021. Usually adorning the roof of the castle, the statues were taken down for public display for the first time since the 2005 Aichi Expo to bolster the local economy amid the coronavirus pandemic. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
Useful resources for foreign residents and visitors in Japan
- Tokyo Metropolitan Government's "Tokyo Coronavirus Support Center for Foreign Residents (TOCOS)" multilingual hotline
- Available in Simple Japanese, English, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Nepali, Indonesian, Tagalog, Thai, Portuguese, Spanish, French, Khmer, and Burmese, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays except national holidays.
0120-296-004 (toll free)
https://www.seikatubunka.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/chiiki_tabunka/tabunka/tabunkasuishin/0000001452.html - AMDA Medical Information Center's "Multilingual Consultation Service"
- Available in Simple Japanese and English, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays. Also available in Chinese, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish, Tagalog, Thai, and Vietnamese on designated weekdays. Check schedule here.
03-6233-9266 - Tokyo Metropolitan Government's COVID-19 info
https://stopcovid19.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/en/ - Tokyo Metropolitan Government hotline
https://stopcovid19.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/en/contacts
- Available in English, Chinese, Korean and Japanese, 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. (including weekends and holidays)
0570-550571
- Available via fax for those with hearing impairments
03-5388-1396 - Japan National Tourism Organization's "Guide for when you are feeling ill"
- Multilingual clinic/hospital search available in English, Korean, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Japanese
https://www.jnto.go.jp/emergency/eng/mi_guide.html - JNTO's "Japan Visitor Hotline"
https://www.japan.travel/en/plan/hotline/
- Available in English, Chinese, Korean and Japanese 24 hours a day
050-3816-2787
+81-50-3816-2787 (from overseas) - Japan's health ministry hotline
- Available in Japanese only, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
0120-565653 - World Health Organization's "Q&A on coronaviruses"
https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/q-a-coronaviruses
