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Tourism is an important source of money for the popular Indonesian holiday island of Bali
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ViewStock via www.imago-images.d / imago images / ViewStock
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Palau
has the highest vaccination rate in the world at 99 percent
9.41 a.m.:
On the small Pacific island of Palau, almost the entire population has now been vaccinated against the
corona virus
.
99 percent of those over twelve - a total of 16,152 people - have now received two vaccinations, as the Red Cross announced.
This makes the archipelago with its 500 archipelagos the country with the highest vaccination rate in the world.
The Red Cross calls on other Pacific states to take Palau as an example.
In the Solomon Islands, with a population of 650,000, and in Kiribati, with 119,000, less than ten percent have been vaccinated, and in Papua New Guinea even less than one percent.
Latvia's President tested positive for Corona
9.38 a.m.:
Latvian President Egils Levits has tested positive for the
corona virus
.
According to the Presidential Chancellery in Riga, a quick test on Wednesday evening after Levits returned from a working visit to Sweden was positive.
A PCR test is now to be carried out, said a spokeswoman for the head of state of the Baltic EU and NATO country.
Because of the positive test, Levits postponed his Thursday meeting with the new Estonian President Alar Karis, who had come to Riga for his inaugural visit.
On his first trip abroad as the Estonian head of state, Karis is now supposed to meet with parliamentary speaker Inara Murniece instead.
Levits was one of the first in Latvia to be vaccinated against corona in front of the camera in February.
The 66-year-old wanted to encourage the 1.9 million citizens of the Baltic state to do the same.
The vaccination campaign in Latvia is very slow.
At the same time, the infection rate has increased significantly in recent weeks - the government in Riga has therefore declared a state of emergency.
It is valid from Monday to January 11th.
ngo / dpa / AFP / Reuters