Novel coronavirus has been dominating the world for over 15 months and is showing no signs of stopping anytime soon as the latest COVID-19 global tally exceeds 138 million. The third surge of the viral infection has proven to be the most lethal one so far. Particularly, Asia and the Middle East have seen a serious rise in new cases recently.

In a recent media briefing WHO Chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus apprised the world about the gravity of the current coronavirus situation of the world. He shared the latest COVID-19 trends as observed by the WHO.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO) reports, recently the world reported seven consecutive weeks of increasing cases, and four weeks of increasing deaths. Also, the past week proved to be the fourth-highest number of cases in a single week so far. Prior to this spike, in the first two months of 2021, the world saw six consecutive weeks of declining cases.

Tedros said:

This is despite the fact that more than 780 million doses of vaccine have now been administered globally.

Elucidating his point regarding the effect of COVID-19 vaccination, he stated:

Make no mistake, vaccines are a vital and powerful tool. But they are not the only tool. We say this day after day, week after week. And we will keep saying it. Physical distancing works. Masks work. Hand hygiene works. Ventilation works. Surveillance, testing, contact tracing, isolation, supportive quarantine, and compassionate care – they all work to stop infections and save lives.

In short, Tedros emphasized that a whole range of measures is needed to successfully thwart the spread of coronavirus across the globe.

He also urged the global community to unite against this deadly virus that has already claimed almost 3 million lives. According to him, with a concerted effort to apply public health measures alongside equitable vaccination, we could bring this pandemic under control in a matter of months.