The head of the World Health Organization has warned that the Covid pandemic is not over yet and urged people to get vaccinated.
During the 75th session of the WHO Regional Committee for South-East Asia that began in Bhutan yesterday, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, “The pandemic is not over yet. The virus is still circulating and still changing.. If the pandemic has taught us nothing else, it has taught us that health is the most precious commodity on earth. A commodity that must be cherished, prized and struggled with every day. A luxury for the privileged. Not as, but as a fundamental human right”.
He said that the fall cases of covid May be due to low testing rates around the world. According to WHO data, 4.5 million new Covid cases were reported last week, which is 16% less than the previous week. Deaths also decreased by 13%, with about 13,500 deaths. The UN health agency said coronavirus infections dropped everywhere in the world, while deaths decreased everywhere except in Southeast Asia, where they climbed 15%, and in the western Pacific, where they rose 3%.
WHO Director-General Tedros warned that with the onset of winter in the Northern Hemisphere and the possible emergence of more dangerous new covid-19 version, experts expect to see a rise in hospitalizations and deaths. Tedros said vaccination rates were still very low even in wealthy countries, noting that 30% of health workers and 20% of older people are unimmunised.
Tedros wanted all countries to have 70 percent of their population vaccinated by the end of June.
But 136 countries failed to reach the target, of which 66 still had less than 40% coverage.
last month, WHO chief Said that only 10 countries had less than 10 percent coverage, most of which were facing humanitarian emergencies.
“One-third of the world’s population has not been vaccinated, which includes two-thirds of health workers and three-quarters of older adults in low-income countries. All countries at all income levels need to be able to vaccinate those most at risk. to ensure access to life-saving therapeutics, to continue testing and sequencing, and to set consistent, proportionate policies to limit transmission and save lives”.
catch all business News, market news, today’s fresh news events and breaking news Updates on Live Mint. download mint news app To get daily market updates.