Germany eases lockdown for playgrounds, churches

Germany has agreed to reopen playgrounds, churches and cultural institutions such as museums and zoos that have been closed because of the coronavirus pandemic.

However, the country has postponed a decision on whether to relax the rules for restaurants, hotels, schools and kindergartens.

Chancellor Angela Merkel said that while there would be regional differences because of Germany's federal structure, the overall goal remains ensuring the health system can cope with the country's outbreak. She was talking to reporters after a meeting with the Governors of Germany's 16 states.

According to figures compiled by Johns Hopkins University, Germany, a country of 83 million people, has recorded almost 162,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 6,467



deaths.

Over the past week, Germany recorded between 1,000 and 1,500 new cases a day, down from 2,000 the previous week.

The country's success in flattening the curve of infections has sparked calls for its lockdown to end, particularly from businesses that have been closed.

Jobless figures released on Thursday showed unemployment in Germany rose by over three lakh to over 26 lakhs in the past month.

The jobless rate in April stood at 5.8 percent, up from 5.1 percent in March.

Ms Merkel said the federal and state governments at their next meeting on May 6, will focus on further relaxing the rules for schools, childcare centers and sports facilities.