Czech Republic: What’s behind world’s worst COVID infection rate?

And what can be done to stem cases and deaths? Jan Pačes, a leading expert in viral sequencing, talks to Al Jazeera.

Prague, Czech Republic – With a population of 10.7 million and about 1.4 million COVID cases to date, the Czech Republic has the highest per capita infection rate in the world. Its death toll – a grim 22,000 people – is also concerning. On March 1, Prime Minister Andrej Babis introduced the strictest lockdown so far. People are banned from travelling within the country, between districts, and cannot visit one another. All retailers, except essential shops such as supermarkets, are closed.