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Nikkei Asian Review No.17:  life in lockdown 

Nobel laureate Yamanaka frets over Japan's lax coronavirus fight
Shinya Yamanaka couldn't sit still as he considered the possibility of a major coronavirus outbreak in Japan.

To the 57-year-old cellular biologist, it looked as if Tokyo was a month or so behind New York, which was being ravaged by the deadly respiratory disease. People in the Japanese capital appeared to treat the coronavirus epidemic as something with little bearing on their lives.

Fearing a potential catastrophe, Yamanaka, who won the Nobel Prize for medicine in 2012, rushed to create a simple website in March to provide information to the public about the deadly virus -- what it is, how it spreads, how it can be contained, how it might be cured. The website, updated daily, offers readers statistics, news reports and academic journal articles relevant to the virus that causes COVID-19

"I really hope that Japan will be spared a major outbreak, but the chances of one happening are actually growing," Yamanaka said in an interview via Zoom.

Grab and Gojek burn cash to keep gig drivers afloat
Grab and Gojek, the biggest on-demand mobility startups in Southeast Asia, face competing financial crosswinds as they navigate the coronavirus outbreak, spending millions of dollars to upport their drivers with an eye toward the ensuing recovery.

Demand for rides has spiraled downward by double-digit rates, leaving drivers struggling to make a living.

Amir, who drives a motorcycle for Gojek in Indonesia, is having trouble paying rent, and he is considering moving or skimping on food.

"My daily pay has fallen to 30,000 rupiah ($1.91)," he said. "It's a third of what I made before the coronavirus epidemic."

Both Singapore, where Grab is based, and Malaysia have imposed stay-at-home orders. In Gojek's home country of Indonesia, President Joko Widodo urged residents to remain indoors. The capital, Jakarta, enacted stronger social restrictions last week, including a ban against ferrying riders on motorbikes.

Coronavirus exposes ASEAN divisions on rice security
The rapid spread of new coronavirus cases in Southeast Asia has exposed the region's divisions on food security, particularly as rice-growing nations move to lock up supplies of the staple.

In Thailand, the world's second-biggest rice exporter, a curfew imposed on April 3 is driving consumers to hoard rice for fear of a prolonged stay-at-home order. Meanwhile, Vietnam, the third-largest exporter, imposed a rice export ban on March 24, with Cambodia following suit.

Such actions by major rice growers have raised concerns in importer nations and prompted senior officials from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations members to hold an urgent meeting earlier this month to seek ways of securing food supplies in the 10-nation regional bloc.

"We basically agreed that ASEAN nations should keep their trade open to allow all members access to goods, particularly food," Oramon Sapthaweetham, director-general of Thailand's Department of Trade Negotiations, told the Nikkei Asian Review.

Check out more at: https://asia.nikkei.com/Print-Edition/Issue-2020-04-23
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