Complacency is big danger, warns WHO on easing COVID vigil

GENEVA, June 09. 2020: As almost seven million cases of COVID-19 and almost 400,000 deaths have been reported, WHO Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has warned the nations against slipping into ease from the current restrictions in the wake of COVID 19 pandemic.

“More than six months into this pandemic, this is not the time for any country to take its foot off the pedal, Dr Tedros said addressing the global media on Monday.

This is the time for countries to continue to work hard, on the basis of science, solutions and solidarity. Although the situation in Europe is improving, globally it is worsening, he noted.

More than 100,000 cases have been reported on 9 of the past 10 days. Sunday, more than 136,000 cases were reported, the most in a single day so far. Almost 75% of yesterday’s cases come from 10 countries, mostly in the Americas and South Asia, Dr Tedros said..

Most countries in the African region are still experiencing an increase in the number of COVID-19 cases, with some reporting cases in new geographic areas, although most countries in the region have less than 1000 cases.

“We also see increasing numbers of cases in parts of Eastern Europe and central Asia. At the same time, we’re encouraged that several countries around the world are seeing positive signs,” he said.

In these countries, the biggest threat now is complacency. Results from studies to see how much of the population has been exposed to the virus show that most people globally are still susceptible to infection, he added.