Editor's note

Across the world countries continue to introduce drastic new measures to try and manage the relentless spread of COVID-19.

In the UK, Britons woke up to the most severe restrictions ever imposed in peacetime, after Boris Johnson, the prime minister, last night instructed people to stay in their homes for at least three weeks to try to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Nicholas Clapham explains the measures.

In South Africa, the country’s President Cyril Ramaphosa announced a 21-day lockdown which is due to come into effect on Thursday night. The country has reported the largest number of COVID-19 cases in sub-Saharan Africa. But, as elsewhere, questions are being raised about the economic impact the measures will have, particularly on weaker economies. Alex Broadbent and Benjamin T H Smart argue that not enough attention is being given to thinking through some of the more drastic actions while Seán Mfundza Muller sets out why public health decisions ultimately also need to consider broader social and economic contexts.

In Australia state and federal governments announced a flurry of new regulations. While the new rules are clear on some questions – gyms are out but bottleshops remain open – they’re silent on many common scenarios.

Elsewhere, the pandemic continues to wreak havoc across continents. For a round-up of coverage from The Conversation International, read the third of our regular updates.

Stephen Khan

Editor

Top Story

Health care systems around the world are ramping up their response to the spread of COVID-19, like this hospital in Washington state. AP Photo/Ted S. Warren

Coronavirus weekly: as the virus spreads, economies grind to halt

Martin La Monica, The Conversation

Citizens around the world look warily at the rates of illnesses and deaths at home and abroad as the economic effects of COVID-19 start to hit.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has brought in new legislation to manage the coronavirus pandemic. PA/Leon Neal

Coronavirus: the UK government’s new emergency powers explained

Nicholas Clapham, University of Surrey

New legislation gives the government power to clamp down on public gatherings – but the changes have a time limit.

South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa declaring a national lockdown as a result of COVID-19. EPA/picture supplied by GCIS (Government Information Services)

COVID-19: the cure could be worse than the disease for South Africa

Seán Mfundza Muller, University of Johannesburg

Epidemiology is only one of the inputs that should be considered in designing public health policy response to COVID-19 pandemic. The wider social and economic contexts must be factored in too.

COVID-19 treatment might already exist in old drugs – we’re using pieces of the coronavirus itself to find them

Nevan Krogan, University of California, San Francisco

Among the more than 20,000 drugs approved by the FDA, there may be some that can treat COVID-19. A team at the University of California, San Francisco, is identifying possible candidates.

Why a one-size-fits-all approach to COVID-19 could have lethal consequences

Alex Broadbent, University of Johannesburg; Benjamin T H Smart, University of Johannesburg

Social distancing is impossible in much of Africa, and its economic consequences may lead to a famine that is worse than the pandemic. Prevention measures must consider the African context.