WHO Director General Says The End Of COVID-19 Pandemic Is In Sight

JAKARTA - The Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO) is optimistic that the years-long health crisis that has killed millions of people will pass, referring to the end of the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to him, the world has never been in a better position to end the COVID-19 pandemic, calling the end of the crisis near.

"We are not there yet. But the end is in sight," said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

It was the most optimistic assessment of the UN agency, since declaring an international state of emergency in January 2020, starting to describe COVID-19 as a pandemic three months later.

The virus, which emerged in China in late 2019, has killed nearly 6.5 million people and infected 606 million, roiling the global economy and flooding healthcare systems.

The launch of vaccines and therapies has helped stem deaths and hospitalizations, while the Omicron variant that emerged late last year caused less severe disease.

Deaths from COVID-19 last week were the lowest since March 2020, the UN agency reported.

Dr. Tedros again urged countries to maintain vigilance and liken the pandemic to a marathon race.

"Now is the time to run harder and make sure we cross the line and reap the rewards of all our hard work."

Countries need to take a close look at their policies and strengthen them for COVID-19 and the virus in the future, Tedros said. He also urged countries to vaccinate 100 percent of high-risk groups, while continuing to test for the virus.

The WHO says countries need to maintain adequate supplies of medical equipment and health workers.

"We expect there will be waves of infection in the future, potentially at different time points around the world caused by different Omicron subvariants, or even different variants," said WHO senior epidemiologist Maria Van Kerkhove.

With more than 1 million deaths this year alone, the pandemic remains an emergency globally and in most countries.

The next meeting of WHO experts to decide whether the pandemic is still a public health emergency of international concern will be held in October, a WHO spokesman said.