MINSK, 3 February (BelTA) – Specialists from Belarus and Russia are discussing a joint project to study herd immunity against COVID-19 in Belarus, Head of the Federal Service for Surveillance on Consumer Rights Protection and Human Well-Being [Rospotrebnadzor] Anna Popova said at the meeting with Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko, BelTA has learned.
“The sanitary services of our states have been closely and fruitfully interacting since the beginning of the pandemic. Of course, the pandemic has left a lasting imprint on the economies of our countries, on communication. All this has taken its toll on trade and economic cooperation,” Roman Golovchenko said.
At the same time, he continued, the concerted effort is yielding some good results in overcoming the aftermath of the pandemic. “A well-coordinated effort between the two countries helps implement the decisions made ,” the Belarusian head of government stated.
According to Anna Popova, at present specialists from Belarus and Russia are discussing joint research related to COVID-19. “The first objective is to study herd immunity in Belarus. Such a project is making great strides in the Russian Federation, it has given us a better understanding of how many people in Russia have immunity [against COVID-19],” Anna Popova said.
According to her, the information on herd immunity allows predicting how the pandemic will evolve in the future.
Another initiative under discussion is tracking the variability of the virus in Belarus. This work has been in progress in the Russian Federation for a long time. Scientists around the world have identified new evidence of the virus mutations, Anna Popova concluded.
