The World Health Organisation (WHO) has insisted that the COVID-19 pandemic would permanently act as pathogen in humans and animals in the nearest future, adding that it remains a global health threat.
This was even as 170,000 persons died globally from COVID-19-related virus in the last eight weeks despite the preventive measures adopted more than a year ago when Omicron infections surged.
Director-General of WHO, Tedros Ghebreyesus stated this on Monday while commenting on the recently concluded 14th COVID Emergency Committee meeting held in Geneva via videoconference on Friday.
“It is three years since COVID-19 was declared a public health emergency of international concern. The novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) was first reported in Wuhan, China, on December 31, 2019,’’ he said.
Over 752.5 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 had been recorded globally, including 6.8 million deaths as contained in WHO’s Coronavirus dashboard.
Ghebreyesus lamented that surveillance and genetic sequencing of the pandemic had declined globally, which made it more difficult to track down known variants and detect new mutations.
He regretted that health institutions continuously struggle to treat a high number of COVID-19 patients and others with influenza and respiratory infections, irrespective of shortage of health workers.
Ghebreyesus disclosed that vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics remained critical in preventing severe disease, saving lives and taking the pressure off health systems and health workers globally.
The UN health chief hinted that response to the pandemic remained hobbled in too many countries that were unable to provide the needed care and equipment for the elderly and health workers.
At the Friday meeting, participants had expressed shock at the insufficient vaccine uptake in low and middle-income countries, as well as in the highest-risk groups globally, and the uncertainty associated with emerging variants.
They recognised that pandemic fatigue and the impression of reduced risk of the virus led to poor adherence of public health and social measures such as masks and social distancing.
To this end, WHO urged countries to remain vigilant and continue to report surveillance and genomic sequencing data to its offices.
At least, 13.1 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered globally, just as 89 per cent of health workers and 81 per cent of older adults over 60 years completed the primary series.
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