Tedros During Key Meeting: ‘Dangerous To Assume Pandemic Is Nearing End'

Adds it is possible to exit the acute phase of the pandemic this year where Covid constitutes a global health emergency if strategies & tools such as testing, vaccines are used in a comprehensive way

MPOST BUREAU

GENEVA/NEW DELHI: The head of the World Health Organisation (WHO) is warning that conditions remain ideal for more Coronavirus variants to emerge and says it’s dangerous to assume Omicron is the last one or that we are in the endgame while saying the acute phase of the pandemic could still end this year if some key targets are met.

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO’s director-general, laid out on Monday an array of achievements and concerns in global health over issues like reducing tobacco use, fighting resistance to anti-microbial treatments, and risks of climate change on human health. But he said ending the acute phase of the pandemic must remain our collective priority.

“There are different scenarios for how the pandemic could play out and how the acute phase could end. But it’s dangerous to assume that Omicron will be the last variant or that we are in the endgame,” Tedros told the start of a WHO executive board meeting this week. On the contrary, globally, the conditions are ideal for more variants to emerge.