WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warns against relaxing containment measures, says there is still ‘a long way to go’.
Tedros said that there were “worrying upward trends” in early epidemics in parts of Africa and central and South America, while also warning that opening up global travel needed to be managed carefully.
“Most countries are still in the early stages of their epidemics and some that were affected early in the pandemic are starting to see a resurgence in cases,” he told Geneva journalists in a virtual briefing.
“Make no mistake, we have a long way to go. This virus will be with us for a long time,” he added, while noting progress in Western Europe.
Ryan, the WHO’s top emergencies expert, warned against opening up global travel too quickly, saying it would require “careful risk management”.
The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) said there were “worrying upward trends” in early epidemics in parts of Africa and central and South America, warning that the “virus will be with us for a long time”.
WHO chief says he hopes US reconsiders decision to cut funding
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the head of the WHO, said he hoped the Trump administration would reconsider its suspension of funding, but that his main focus was on ending the pandemic and saving lives.
“I hope the freezing of the funding will be reconsidered and the US will once again support WHO’s work and continue to save lives,” Tedros said.
“I hope the US believes that this an important investment, not just to help others but for the US to stay safe also.”
Mike Ryan, WHO’s top emergencies expert, said that it was important to understand the animal origins of the new coronavirus which jumped the
As of Thursday,
- More than 2.5 million people around the world have been diagnosed with the coronavirus. At least 178,000 have died, with the US accounting for about a quarter of all deaths, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
- The United Nations is warning global hunger could double as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, putting 265 million people at risk.
- Australia is trying to build support internationally for an independent review of the origins and spread of the coronavirus pandemic.