The world has never been in a better position to end the COVID-19 pandemic, the head of the World Health Organization said on Wednesday. Notably, his most optimistic outlook yet on the years-long health crisis which has killed over six million people.
“We are not there yet. But the end is in sight”: WHO Director-General
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters at a virtual press conference, “We have never been in a better position to end the pandemic. We are not there yet, but the end is in sight.” Last week, the newly reported cases of the deadly disease fell to the lowest level since March 2020, Tedros said. He also urged the world to step up to “seize this opportunity”.
He said, “If we don’t take this opportunity now, we run the risk of more variants, more deaths, more disruption, and more uncertainty.” That was the most upbeat assessment from the UN agency since it declared an international emergency in January 2020 and started describing COVID-19 as a pandemic three months later.
There should be steps to finally control and understand COVID-19
As per WHO’s latest epidemiological report on COVID-19, the number of reported cases fell 28 percent to 3.1 million during the week ending September 11, following a 12-percent-drop a week earlier. The virus, which emerged in China in late 2019, has killed nearly 6.5 million people and infected 606 million, roiling global economies and overwhelming healthcare systems.
“The COVID-19 summer wave, driven by Omicron BA.4 and BA.5, showed that the pandemic is not yet over as the virus continues to circulate in Europe and beyond,” a European Commission spokesperson said.
WHO’s next meeting of experts to decide whether the pandemic still represents a public health emergency of international concern is due in October, a WHO spokesperson said.
Countries need to take a hard look at their policies and strengthen them for COVID-19 and future viruses, Tedros said. He also urged nations to vaccinate 100% of their high-risk groups and keep testing for the virus.