The toll of the Covid-19 epidemic, which has infected 137 million people worldwide, is now approaching three million deaths, with a new acceleration in deaths in recent weeks, especially in Brazil and India: if the number of deaths reached two million after one year, it took only three months to approach the three million mark. The more virulent variants, detected for the first time in the United Kingdom, Brazil and South Africa, as well as the weariness of the population in the face of health measures and restrictions could explain this new wave.
But from one continent to another, or even from one country to another, the informed causes of death fluctuate, depending on whether they are recorded in connection with the coronavirus, in hospitals or at home. The count also varies depending on the strength of the health, social and statistical systems, and the degree of political transparency.
Life expectancy affected in Europe
The 52 countries of greater Europe, which stretches east to Russia and Azerbaijan, alone have recorded nearly 1.1 million deaths. The United Kingdom, Russia, France, Italy and Germany concentrate 60% of coronavirus-related deaths on this continent. However, it is the small Czech Republic that has the highest number of deaths relative to its population, with 263 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants, followed by Hungary (245), Bosnia (225), Montenegro (223) and Bulgaria (208).
Spain, for its part, has just over 75,300 dead. In December 2020, the government of Pedro Sanchez had to reassess upwards the number of deaths over the period from March to May 2020, resulting in a figure 70% higher than the data provided at the time. At the end of May, the Ministry of Health reported 27,127 deaths linked to Covid-19, a figure increased to 45,684 deaths after review by the National Institute of Statistics.
In Belgium, excess mortality reached 16.6% during the year 2020, according to data from the public health institute Sciensano. That is 17,966 more deaths than in previous years, an increase largely attributed to Covid-19 and, for a small part, to the heatwave that raged in August (1,500 estimated deaths). Thierry Eggerickx, researcher at the National Scientific Research Fund and professor of demography at the Catholic University of Louvain, notes that the pandemic has led to a reduction in life expectancy of 1.1 years for men and 0.9 year for women.
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