Czech news in brief for April 10: Friday’s top afternoon headlines

The Czech Republic will be able to draw over CZK 50 million in loans from the EU’s Security Action for Europe (SAFE) fund designed to provide financial assistance and boost member states’ defense and military preparedness after the EU Council gave its final approval on Friday. According to earlier information provided by the Czech Ministry of Defense, the funds could be used to buy German-made Leopard 2A8 tanks and Tatra T-815 vehicles.

Organized by anti-abortion activists, the March for Life will pass through the center of Prague on Saturday afternoon, starting from Hradčany Square and finishing on Wenceslas Square. Supervised by hundreds of police officers, the demonstration is expected to split up into several smaller processions along the way. Last year, the march was blocked by women’s rights activists and counter-protesters and could not reach its final destination. Traffice and security restrictions will be in place from 12:30.

Unemployment in the Czech Republic fell by 0.2 percentage point in March to reach 5 percent, according to the latest data published by the Labor Office, with joblessness decreasing in all regions. There was about 370,000 unemployed people at the end of last month, and vacancies slightly increased to more than 90,000 open positions on the Czech job market – meaning there were about 4 job seekers per vacancy.

The number of patients diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in the Czech Republic has doubled in just 11 years, according to the Ministry of Health. More than 85,000 people are suffering from Alzheimer’s, according to official data, and this figure could increase to more than 250,000 by mid-century. Directly linked to the ageing of the population, this surge could put Czechia’s healthcare system under even more strain, experts have warned.

Famed Czech explorer and adventurer Miroslav Jakeš died during an expedition in the Norwegian archipelago of Spitsbergen, iDnes.cz reported. Rescuers found the body of the 75-year-old Czech in a crevasse after several days of search. Among his notable exploits, Jakeš was the first Czech to reach the North Pole by ski and became the first person to cross into Greenland without any outside help in 1996.