Here are the latest COVID-19 updates from Japan and beyond:
<April 6, 2022>
- The number of new infection cases with the novel coronavirus in China hit a record high, exceeding 20,000, the health authorities said Wednesday, casting doubt on the effectiveness of the country's radical "zero COVID" policy.
- The Asian Development Bank said Wednesday that developing and newly industrialized Asian economies will grow 5.2 percent in 2022 as they continue to recover from the coronavirus pandemic, but warned of fallout from Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
<April 5, 2022>
- Doctors and nursery school teachers are among the most popular jobs among girls who are entering elementary school in Japan, an annual survey showed Tuesday, perhaps reflecting the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on their young minds.
<April 4, 2022>
- China has sent about 2,000 military medical staff and thousands of health care workers to Shanghai as COVID-19 infections continued to increase Monday in the country's most important financial center.
<April 3, 2022>
- Japan aims to accelerate its vaccine research and development under a new government body after lagging behind other advanced countries in making vaccines available during the early stages of the coronavirus pandemic.
<April 2, 2022>
- Japan is seeing a rebound in COVID-19 cases across the country, government data showed Saturday, as experts caution that another resurgence of infections may be around the corner.
- Japan's economy, which has already been facing downward pressure against a backdrop of the Ukraine crisis and the yen's depreciation, may also be plagued by China's radical "zero COVID" policy and the yuan's rising trend.
<April 1, 2022>
- Japan's recovery from the COVID-19 economic fallout is at a crossroads as surging raw material costs, driven by the war in Ukraine and amplified by a weak yen, are beginning to cool corporate sentiment.
- The government said Friday that Seiko Noda, minister in charge of gender equality and children's policies, has been infected with the novel coronavirus, the first confirmed case among incumbents of the Japanese Cabinet.
- Japan will raise its daily limit on entrants from overseas to around 10,000 from April 10, up from the current 7,000, the top government spokesman said Friday.
- Japan on Friday eased its travel warning for 106 nations including the United States and India over the coronavirus pandemic, no longer recommending Japanese nationals against traveling to these areas.
- The western part of Shanghai, China's financial and business hub, began to be locked down Friday to carry out mass COVID-19 testing, as new infections with the novel coronavirus has been resurging recently.
- New recruits at companies, public offices, and other organizations in Japan began work Friday, the start of the fiscal year, with some firms reviving in-person ceremonies for the first time since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic more than two years ago.
Japan and beyond: Week in Photos - March 26~April 1
Useful resources for foreign residents and visitors in Japan
- Health ministry call center
COVID-19: 0120-565-653 (toll free)
COVID-19 Vaccines: 0120-761-770 (toll free)
-Interpreters available for English, Chinese, Korean, Portuguese and Spanish 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.; for Thai 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.; for Vietnamese 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. - Health ministry's COVID-19 Vaccine Navigation website
https://v-sys.mhlw.go.jp/en/ - 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)