The world has never been in a better position to end the COVID-19 pandemic, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday, urging countries to continue their efforts against the virus that has killed more than 6 million people.
“We’re not there yet. But the end is not in sight,” WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told journalists at a virtual press conference.
The death toll from COVID-19 last week was the lowest since March 2020, the UN agency said.
While WHO expects waves of COVID-19 infections to continue in the future, the world has tools such as vaccines and antiviral drugs to prevent serious infections, said Maria Kerhave, technical lead for COVID-19.
Monkeypox cases were also declining, but Tedros urged countries to continue the fight. “As with COVID-19, now is not the time to relax or let our guard down.”
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— World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) September 14, 2022
