AFTER over 3 years, and nearly 7 million dead, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced that COVID-19 is no longer a global emergency.
“Yesterday, the Emergency Committee met for the 15th time and recommended to me that I declare an end to the public health emergency of international concern. I have accepted that advice,” Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General.
The W.H.O. said that COVID-19’s status was officially downgraded but stressed that the virus remains a global health threat.
WHO clarified that while the emergency phase of COVID-19 is over, people are still dying every week because of the virus.
But the decision to lower the COVID-19 global alert level was made after a meeting of experts on Thursday.
Since the pandemic began, the world has seen 764 million covid-19 cases recorded across the world, with 5 out of 7 billion people having reportedly received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.
Meanwhile, Dr. Tedros warned that countries should not let down their guard as the virus is still here to say, is still changing and that the risk remains of new variants emerging that cause new surges in cases and deaths.
“This virus is here to stay. It is still killing, and it is still changing. The risk remains of new variants emerging that cause new surges in cases and deaths,” said Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General.
