GENEVA: The number of new coronavirus cases reported worldwide continues to decline, except that Of America And AfricaThe World Health Organization said in its latest assessment of the pandemic.
In its weekly pandemic report released late Tuesday, the United Nations health agency said it had recorded nearly 3.5 million new cases and more than 25,000 deaths globally, representing a decrease of 12% and 25%, respectively.
A declining trend in reported infections began in March, although many countries have ended their extensive testing and surveillance programmes, making accurate counts of cases extremely difficult.
The WHO said there were only two regions where there were reported increases in Covid-19 infections: the Americas, 14% and Africa, 12%. cases remained stable in Western Pacific and fell everywhere, the agency said.
WHO Director General tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned during a press briefing this week that “the rising number of cases in more than 50 countries highlights the instability of this virus.”
Tedros said Covid-19 variants, including mutated versions of the highly infectious Omikron, are driving the resurgence of Covid-19 in several countries, including South Africa, which in November was the first country to identify Omicron.
He said the population’s relatively high rate of immunity is preventing an increase in hospitalizations and deaths, but cautioned that “this is not a guarantee for places where vaccination levels are low.” Only 16% of people in poor countries have been immunized against COVID-19.
The WHO report said that China saw some of the biggest jumps in Covid-19 cases, which saw a 145% increase over the past week.
Earlier this week, Chinese authorities doubled down on pandemic restrictions in Shanghai after easing them briefly. Following complaints of food shortages and quarantines, where some people were forced to surrender their house keys, the move disappointed residents who had been anticipating a more than month-long lockdown .
The WHO’s Tedros said on Tuesday he did not think China’s “zero-Covid” strategy was sustainable, “given the behavior of the virus now and what we anticipate in the future.”
On Thursday, North Korea announced its first coronavirus outbreak and imposed a nationwide lockdown. The size of the outbreak was not immediately known, but it could have serious consequences as the country has a poor health care system and its 26 million people are believed to be mostly illiterate.
In its weekly pandemic report released late Tuesday, the United Nations health agency said it had recorded nearly 3.5 million new cases and more than 25,000 deaths globally, representing a decrease of 12% and 25%, respectively.
A declining trend in reported infections began in March, although many countries have ended their extensive testing and surveillance programmes, making accurate counts of cases extremely difficult.
The WHO said there were only two regions where there were reported increases in Covid-19 infections: the Americas, 14% and Africa, 12%. cases remained stable in Western Pacific and fell everywhere, the agency said.
WHO Director General tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned during a press briefing this week that “the rising number of cases in more than 50 countries highlights the instability of this virus.”
Tedros said Covid-19 variants, including mutated versions of the highly infectious Omikron, are driving the resurgence of Covid-19 in several countries, including South Africa, which in November was the first country to identify Omicron.
He said the population’s relatively high rate of immunity is preventing an increase in hospitalizations and deaths, but cautioned that “this is not a guarantee for places where vaccination levels are low.” Only 16% of people in poor countries have been immunized against COVID-19.
The WHO report said that China saw some of the biggest jumps in Covid-19 cases, which saw a 145% increase over the past week.
Earlier this week, Chinese authorities doubled down on pandemic restrictions in Shanghai after easing them briefly. Following complaints of food shortages and quarantines, where some people were forced to surrender their house keys, the move disappointed residents who had been anticipating a more than month-long lockdown .
The WHO’s Tedros said on Tuesday he did not think China’s “zero-Covid” strategy was sustainable, “given the behavior of the virus now and what we anticipate in the future.”
On Thursday, North Korea announced its first coronavirus outbreak and imposed a nationwide lockdown. The size of the outbreak was not immediately known, but it could have serious consequences as the country has a poor health care system and its 26 million people are believed to be mostly illiterate.