Will we finally see the end of the tunnel? The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) says the world has never been in a better position to end the Covid-19 pandemic, which has caused the death of several million people since the end of 2019 .
“Last week, the number of weekly deaths from Covid-19 fell to the lowest since March 2020. We have never been in a better position to end the pandemic”said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus during a press briefing, Wednesday, September 14, in Geneva.
However, he warned: “We are not there yet, but the end is at hand. “Someone who runs a marathon doesn’t stop when he sees the finish line. He runs faster, with all the energy he has left. And U.S. too “said the director general of the WHO.
“We can all see the finish line, we are on the way to winning but it really would be the worst time to stop racing”he insisted. “If we don’t seize this opportunity, we run the risk of having more variants, more deaths, more disruptions and more uncertainty”judged “Doctor Tedros” again.
According to the latest epidemiological report on Covid-19 published by the WHO, the number of cases fell by 12% during the week of August 29 to September 4 compared to the previous week, with some 4.2 million new infections. declared. The number of infections is undoubtedly much higher, in particular because mild cases are not necessarily declared but also because many countries have more or less dismantled their testing capacities.
As of September 4, the WHO counted more than 600 million officially confirmed cases – again a number that is undoubtedly much lower than the reality, as is that of the officially listed deaths (6.4 million). A study by the organization based on projections and assessments published in May reported 13 to almost 17 million additional deaths from Covid by the end of 2021.
Tips
At the same time as the Dr Tedros launched his message of hope, the WHO published six guides intended for Member States to enable them to quickly put behind them this health crisis which has also cost trillions of euros in terms of growth, paralyzed for entire swathes of the global economy for many months and laid bare the inequalities in the world, particularly in terms of vaccination.
The rich countries have monopolized the available doses and in many poor countries the vaccination rates are still insufficient.
These recommendations “are an urgent call for governments to take a serious look at their policies, to strengthen them against Covid-19 and future pathogens that may have the potential to cause a pandemic”recalled the Secretary General of the UN organization.
Among these recommendations, messages that the WHO has been repeating for almost two years and the arrival of vaccines: vaccinate 100% of vulnerable people and health personnel, continue testing and gene sequencing programs, which in particular make it possible to monitor the trace of new potentially dangerous variants.
“We can end this pandemic together, but only if countries, businesses, communities and individuals step up and seize the opportunity”hammered the head of the WHO.