glad to have you with us on this edition of nhk "newsline." i'm raja pradhan with more. we start with the coronavirus in japan. as of tuesday, there were over 1,000 confirmed and expected cases around 60 hospitals and medical facilities. nearly half involve doctors, nurses, and other health care workers while t the other half e patients.

the statistic is causing alarm among front line workers. >> we a are risisking our own hh by taking care of patients. i feel our medical system is collapsing already. >> in southwestern japan, the number of confirmed casases on cruise shihip currently docked a port in nagasaki is over 90. so far about half of the 623 crew members of the cruise ship hahave been tested. no passengerss are aboard a as ship was undergoing repairirs. one manan in his 40s is in seris conditions. there are now over 12,700 confirmed cases in japan. an additional 700 have been linked to "the diamond princess" which was quarantined near tokyo earlier this year. a total of 344 people have died, including 13 from the diamond

princecess. ofofficials in osaka said a hospital instructed two nurses to keep working even after they tested positive for coronavirus. the officials learned of this in a tweet containing the allegation against osaka's namihaya rehabilitation hospital. the officials say the two nurses were confirmed to be infected on monday, but the hospital reportedly told one of them to work an overnight shift as scheduled that day despite knowing the test result. another nurse was asked to work an overnight shift on tuesday. the hospital has confirmed about 130 coronavirus cases. infected patients are being held in a separate ward. the hospital says both of the nurses tended to the infected. hospital officials say they instructed the nurses to continue working because they were unable to find replacements. city officials told the hospital to avoid recurrences. they will also check the working conditions of the administrative staff. japan is a step closer to introducing antibody tests which may help pinpoint people

affected with the coronavirus. >> translator: antibody testing can lead to more diaiagnoses wh combined with pcr tests. >> the health ministry has started to design test kits. the kits are designed to detect antibodies in the blood. the japanese red cross society is evaluating them. it could be a factor in determining when to reopen the economy, but it was added, it depends on how accurate the test kits prove to be. a similar testing program is under way in the united states. results released by new york health officials suggest the virus may have spread far more widely across the state e than previously thought.

a growing number of cases in japan is putting increased strain on medical institutions. nhk world looks at the toll it's taking on patients who don't have the virus. >> reporter: when the pandemic began, this man who nhk has agreed not to identify, was already dealing with a life-threatening illness. he was already set to have surgery, but the procedure was suddenly canceled when a patient at the hospital tested positive for the coronavirus. >> translator: this was more shocking to me than it was to find out i hadad cancer. i fefelt as if i was g getting bad diagagnosis a second time. at that time i thought i was

going to die. >> reporter: as the virus spread, many are seeing procedureses canceled or postponed. hospitals say it's a necessary step to protect patients and to make sure the medical system doesn't collapse. but patients say it's also causing increased anxiety. >> translator: over ththe past week, more people are beginning to worry about having their surgeries postponed. but medical workers are making tremendous efforts to ensure people continue to get treatment. >> reporter: not every facility are canceling. the man with cancer was one of several people to have their procedures moved.

he said he felt relieved to go under the knife at this hospital. >> translator: i think there are many people suffering from life-threatening symptoms. this situation where people are unable to receive their normal medical treatments needs to be addressed as soon as possible. a life that could be saved shouldn't be thrown away. >> reporter: but the institution was not adhering to the pandemic. a few days later, others there teped positive forcing doctors and nurses to stay home. the staff shortage has meant an 80% reduction in surgeries. >> translator: we don't know what will happen next week or after that, but as soon as we can work properly, we're prepared to do more surgeries even if it means opening every operating room during the may holiday period. >> reporter: the hospital is not alone in its struggle nor in its hope that the virus will be brought under control in time for all patients to get the surgeries they so desperately need. nhk world, tokyo. as muslims begin to celebrate the holy month of ramadan on friday, many nations are restricting outings and gatherings due to the pandemic.

mosques have closed across several countries with majority muslim populations like egypt, causing the faithful to trade commununal prayer for solilitud. [ chanting ] >> that's made it impossible to practice the ramadan tradition of sharing free evening meals with the needy. instead, a non-governmental organization on thursday distributed foods such as pasta and sugar to poorer residents. a market in central cairo was filled with shoppers buying food, accessories, and other goods ahead of ramadan. but one store owner said the market was only about half as crowded as usual. >> translator: i pray that the coronavirus will disappear and the crisis will end so people can return to normal life. >> in pakistan, doctors say that desire for normalcy might be

putting population at risk. pakistan's powerful clerics have successfully pushed for mosques to stay open. it is the world's second most populous country and has reported 10,000 cases of the virus. clerics have advised to practice traditions at home. many are hoping for sermons to be delelivered online. >> traranslator: people need to cooperate to protect the virus from spreading as saving lives is the most important thing. >> muslims fast and gather for an evening meal. they also pray five times a day and gather at mosques.

mosques have also closed in mecca in saudi arabia. the country still hopes to host the annual pilgrimage in late july but has asked muslims around the world to put their travel plans on hold until there's more clarity around the pandemic. turning to yet another aspect of the pandemic, the impact on the money migrant workers send to their home countries. the world bank says remittances are projected to drop by nearly 20% this year. the sharp decline is worth an estimated $109 billion. it's expected to have a huge economic impact on low and middle income countries. the world bank says it's largely the result of falling wages and employment as host countries suffer the effects of the pandemic. the hardest hit regions are europe and central asia with a projected drop of nearly 28% followed by sub-saharan africa at about 23% and south asia with a negative 22%. the world bank says remittances to low and middle-income countries reached a record

$554 billion last year. it says that studies show remittances have contributed to alleviate poverty, improve nutrition, boost spending on education, and reduce child labor. the world bank says effective social protection systems are crucial in both developing and advanced nations to safeguard the poor and vulnerable during the crisis. south african president cyril ramaphosa has announced that his government will relax a nationwiwide lockdown and rereo the economy in p phases. >> while a a nationwide lockdow is probably the most effective means to contatain the s spread e virurus,t cannnnot be sustained indedefinitely. our people need to eat. they need to earn a living. >> the government is expected to allow the resumption of operation for mines and some manufacturers on may 1st. these sectors are considered to

be essential in terms of securing foreign currency and creating jobs. the government says it will cocoinue its cautiouous measure as t the number ofof infections contininueto rise.e. it will keep requiring people to practice social distancing and wear face masks. there is a growing outcry in south africa among the poor. they are struggling with a severe shortage of food and a lack of revenue under the country's stay-at-home measures since late march. looting and riots are also worsening the security situation. switching gears for a check on world weather. some residents of eastern and northern europe are dealingng wh strong winds and rain. hohow is the outlook for the continent over the weekend? >> well, it looks like we'll be dealing with that pattern at least for friday. as we head to saturday, showers will be remaining for the eastern areas of europe. it's going to be, you know, more toward the normal period in terms of the wind. the central portions of the continent as we go throughout the next couple of days. we have been watching out for this low up toward the north and

east. a cup of them nearby russia and both of them contributing wind gusts in that general area and also down to the south aaron from 70 to 90 kilometers per hour. that was reported on thursday and we go to friday and winds are on the stronger side and redeveloping as we go through the day. by saturday looking at showers for the moscow key. the highs toward the west will be in the low 20s. mid 20s in many locations. the high pressure still in place but bringing in the lows so showers will be part of the story as we go through saturday. meanwhile, see these bright clouds down to the southeast that's a part of a system that brought part of a severe thunderstorms over wednesday into thursday from the southern plains into the deep south. guess what. that's not the end of the story we have yet another system moving into the central plains here. this low really destabilizes a pattern. once again, looking at

thunderstorms or a slight risk for severe thunderstorms in places like oklahoma city as we go into denver better chances for atlanta into washington, d.c. so high near los angeles mid 30s expected friday and throughout the weekend. across the japan we saw a mix of sun and clouds for most of the country, and i think we're going to be dealing with a high pressure system coming in. a big warm up by next week. we're expecting highs to be in the mid 20s in tokyo and 19 is the high on saturday. that's a look at your forecast. hold up you have a good day wherever you are.

and that wraps up this edition of nhk "newsline." i'm raja pradhan in tokyo. there's more to come on nhk

world japan so please, stay with us. welcome to news line in-depth. it's fair to say life without didifferent witithout informati technology. the race to be at the forefront of this cutting-edge industry is heating up. small countries have looked to secure the best human resources. today we shall use some of the latest development in asia and beyond.

the high capacity network means a two hour movie means it can downloaded in 3 seconds. this makes the smartphones faster and expected to revolutionize entire industries. >> reporter: at this construction site on the outskirts of tokyo, a 5g test run is underway. the heavy machinery is controlled remotely from 200 meters away. the operator uses a video game hand set. he keeps an eye on the machinery through monitors. digging up the earth and h haulg it away is all donee reremotely. that's possible thankss to the high d definition images. the 4 4g networks n now widely use can be a bit s shaky.. remote usese of industrial machininery is limited too d dir sites and other locatatns thaha are hard to access. but 5g can transmit many more

pixels of data. that means operators can monitor the video with few hitches. the construction company envisions running its machine set several different sites from a single command center. that would be a huge advantage for an industry coping with the serious shortage of labor. >> if this technology evolves, we may be able to operate heavy machinery and monitor safety from the office or home. we hope to manage our construction sites with fewer people. >> reporter: another company imagines the system that would connect multiple devices at the same time. this major electronics maker has plans for factories where robots would be controlled wirelessly. the engineers remove all their cables and run them from a tablet. on the current factory floor, robots have so many cables attached that make them hard to move. one production line can normally

only make a single product.. but w with 5g, i it's possible run hundreds of robots at the same time. factory workers can move around the robotss easily. this means that tv production line can be converted into one that makes smartphones. the easy retooling makes it possible to quickly adapt to market needs. the company has already had inquiries from more than 300 potential customers. >> translator: 5g is not just a network. it's a new type of industrial infrastructure. we want to develop a wide range of innovatioions and solutions. > reporter: for now, 5g services are limited to japan' bigger cities. they're set to expand around the nation. that could mean big changes in how we live and work.

>> in japan, the need to secure talented i.t. professionals is particularly urgent. the government estimates a shortfall of about 450,000 workers in the field just 10 years from now. the situation has seen some firms turn their attentions to the brightest young things from eastern europe. >> this game is based on ancient greek warfare. it's set to be launched this year by the japanese game developer sega. all the attention to detail has gone into the augment of the characters. the game is being developed in the studio ain tokyo, a subsidiary of the sega's

company. around 570 people work there. sega already has studios in the uk and france, but it said i it plans to make bulgaria's development center for the whole of eastern europe. the company highly rates the prprogrammg a and the design skills of the workers there. >> translator: the workers who draw the images and do the 3-d and other art work are all highly educated. there are many students and professionals with suchch skill. it's an idea of plalace to crea video games. we want to invest more.e. wewe've had goodd results o ove past three years and have high hopes for the future. >> reporter: there's a reason bulgaria has i.t. professionals. they placed high importance on the study of math, the basis of

i.t. they offer elilite math educati. they a ao focus on algorithms, which are essential in programming. this is a special district. it has been designated as a place to nurture the i.t. industry. the government provides rent support and encourages collaboration with universities. some 25 companies from europe that have the u.s. have set up left here. bulgarian president visited the sega studio in february. he was intrigued by the new game on the development. >> reporter: this is a former air force commander who flew fighter jets.

he tried his hand at the shooting game. i had sa he said the government is ready for the financial support. >> the future belongs to technology. the future belongs to people and companies who dare to go beyond. japanese investment contributes to high technology in bulgaria and high added value. and thehey have a new progressi model of success. >> reporter: japan is also looking at romania. companies are starting to scout promising young candidates who want to work in japan. and japanese recruiting firm has partnerships with three romanian universities. it has begun holding job interviews at one of them

>> i would like to improve my country. that's why i came here today. >> reporter: i.t. companies from the u.s. and other parts of europe are already recruiting and operating in romania. and now japan is joining. >> translator: in romania means we can get highly skilled engineers at good labor costs. many other countries, including china and south korea, are also looking at romania so the global competition is heating up. >> reporter: with such talented and eager i.t. professionals coming out of eastern europe, japan is joining a tough competition to hire them. bulgaria and romania have since declared states of emergency due to the coronavirus

pandemic. employees at the sega studio are working from home while the recruiting firm is suspending operations. both countries belong to a region known as the silicon valley of europe. it's hoped the talented people will eventually pick up where they left off to help shape the future after this extremely testing time. it's no secret that southeast asia is one of the most rapidly developing regions in the world, but amid the boom, laos found itself lagging. recently there was positive signs as young tech entrepreneurs work to change people's lives for the better. >> reporter: in this capital, the global information technology route is catching hold. over the past ten years, the percentage of internet users in the country has grown 15 fold.

local businesses are increasingly taking advantage of the change offering online food delivery services and digital payments. >> reporter: this man runs an i.t. firm that spied a unique opportunity offering ride hailing services aimed at tourists from abroad. an expat -- and expat residents. >> reporter: when people take -- they usually negotiate fees with drivers but many foreign nationals aren't used to the custom and end up paying much higher rates. that's where his ride hailing app comomes in.

people enter the destinations and the fees are set automatically. the service is becoming popular among people from overseas. the company also plans to target domestic users who see heckling as a hassle. >> in five or ten years -- one big problem for the country is a shortage of skilled workers in the industry. the country has had to depend on foreign firms to fill the gap. the government is now trying to change that. it's been holding seminars every month to equip engineers with the latest i.t. skims with the help of an expert from india.

>> translator: the country will lose a lot of opportunities if it fails to be a player in the age of digitalzation and globalization. the government needs to hurry up and develop the resources the industry needs. >> reporter: officials hope their efforts will give the local i.t. industry the resources it needs to keep up with changing times. it. the coronavirus pandemic has surely dealt a heavy blow to the ride hailing industry in laos which stopped issuing tourist visas. others similar sectors may cope during the difficult time for just delivery services. the pandemic has forced many people around the world to work from home or take classes online. the situationon iss certainly stressful but shows just how vital the information technology is to modern life. no doubt it will play a key role

in the post coronavirus world. that's it for anchor: the covid-19 death toll

in france approaches 22,000 as 516 new deaths are e reportrted. hohospital and -- hospitality ad tourism severely impacted. president macron holding talks with industry repeps. the frenchch governmenent gearsp to start distributive face masks. take you to germany, where masks are about to become comompulsory on public transport and in shops. as ramadan begins, millions of muslims face the prospects of a month of daytime fasting without the if