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Pandemic widens regional rich-poor gap in Russia, China seeks to change Covid origin story, Food delivery workers are struggling, and other pandemic-related news across the globe

Pandemic widens gap between Russia’s richest and poorest regions

Russia's glaring inequalities have only been worsened by the pandemic as federal authorities push regional governments to borrow more to meet rising health care costs. Under the current system, Russia's all regions will get share from Central pool of revenues and many face borrowing limits. But, going forward, there are likely to be relaxations in borrowing. As revenues plumment, rating agenices expect regional budgets to run widest deficits in two decades. With federal revenue transfers failing to cover excess spending, Russia's poorest regions are staring at ballooning public debt and regional disparities