Covid infection rate is approaching the highest level so far, WHO chief warns

LONDON — The head of the World Health Organization on Friday mentioned an alarming pattern of rising Covid circumstances has resulted in world infections now approaching their highest level since the begin of the pandemic.

“Around the world, cases and deaths are continuing to increase at worrying rates,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus mentioned in a briefing centered on Papua New Guinea and the western Pacific area.

“Globally, the number of new cases per week has nearly doubled over the past two months. This is approaching the highest rate of infection that we have seen so far during the pandemic,” he continued.

“Some countries that had previously avoided widespread transmission are now seeing steep increases in infections,” Tedros mentioned, citing Papua New Guinea as one instance.

Tedros mentioned the United Nations well being company would proceed to evaluate the evolution of the coronavirus disaster and “adjust advice accordingly.”

Under worldwide well being rules, Tedros mentioned WHO’s emergency committee convened on Thursday and he anticipated to obtain their recommendation on Monday.

“Globally, our message to all people in all countries remains the same. We all have a role to play in ending the pandemic,” he mentioned.

To date, greater than 139 million Covid circumstances have been reported worldwide, with 2.9 million deaths, in line with information compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

The WHO declared the coronavirus a worldwide pandemic on March 11 final yr.

Tedros has previously said that one in all the WHO’s fundamental priorities is to extend the ambition of COVAX, an initiative working for world equitable entry to Covid vaccines, to assist all international locations finish the pandemic.

The COVAX scheme was anticipated to ship nearly 100 million vaccines to folks by the finish of March, however it has solely distributed some 38 million doses so far.

The WHO has mentioned it hopes the initiative will be capable of catch up in the coming months however has condemned what it describes as a “shocking imbalance” in the distribution of vaccines between high-income and low-income international locations.

The well being company has additionally criticized international locations which have sought their very own vaccine offers outdoors of the COVAX initiative for political or business causes.

At the begin of the yr, the WHO’s Tedros had warned the world was on the brink of a “catastrophic moral failure” over vaccine inequality.

He mentioned a “me-first approach” to vaccines would depart the world’s poorest and most weak folks in danger, including the method was “self-defeating” since it could encourage hoarding and sure extend the well being disaster.