Germany’s Bavaria declares state of emergency, announces €10mn fund to reduce coronavirus impact

The premier of Germany’s southern state of Bavaria declared a state of emergency on Monday, Reuters reported, as the number of new coronavirus cases continues to rise.

Markus Soeder also announced a fund worth up to €10 billion ($11.21 billion) to help the region withstand the coronavirus outbreak.

“The situation is very serious and changing daily, unfortunately not for the better,” the Bavarian leader said. He added that the regional government could buy stakes in struggling companies to prevent insolvencies.

Bavaria announced on March 13 that it was closing all schools, kindergartens and nurseries until the start of the Easter break on April 6 due to the coronavirus epidemic. Schools and kindergartens will be shut in most German states until after the Easter holiday in April.