UAE: 28,710 vaccine doses administered in 24 hours

The UAE has administered 28,710 doses of the Covid-19 vaccine in the past 24 hours.

The country's Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) said the total doses administered now stand at 23.6 million.

This takes the rate of doses to 239.61 doses per 100 people.

Throughout the day, vans loaded with bags full of Covid PCR test kits arrive at a Vienna laboratory, currently analysing an average of 370,000 tests per day.

With more than 144 million tests carried out since the beginning of the pandemic, the Alpine nation of nine million is a leader in Covid testing.

But with the latest Omicron wave sending cases spiralling, health experts and policymakers are asking if widespread testing - paid by taxpayers’ money - is necessary and efficient.

Meanwhile, A new face mask that only covers the nose and can be worn while eating or drinking is now on sale in South Korea.

The 'kosk' - a combination of 'ko', which means nose in Korean, and mask - is being manufactured by a South Korean company named Atman. A box of 10 kosks costs 9,800 won ($8.16) on online retailer Coupang.

Meanwhile, reusable 'Copper Antivirus Nose Masks', which only cover the nose at all times and are available in different colours, retail for 2,000 won ($1.65) on the Spar Clone Fabric website.

These unusual masks come in sets of two pieces each, where one piece is a common anti-virus mask, while the other is a nose-specific mask to be worn inside the first piece.

• UAE