Global cases had an 11.5 percent increase, and 1 percent in deaths over the last week. This has led the International Health Regulations Emergency Committee to conclude that the COVID-19 pandemic is far from over.
The COVID-19 pandemic emerged more than a year ago. But, despite all the collective and individual efforts, the world remains in crisis due to the coronavirus.
Many were hoping that it would near its end come this year or the next. Some were even positive that things were about to get better following the emergence of the vaccines.
But, recent events have seemingly shown otherwise. The technical lead on COVID-19 from the World Health Organization has even stated that the world is “moving further away” from the end of the global crisis, according to the New York Post.
The world is in a “very dangerous situation”
During the eighth meeting of the International Health Regulations Emergency Committee last week, Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove provided several notes about the matter. She said that everyone is in a “very dangerous situation” today.
The expert also added that the world is “moving further away” from the end of the COVID-19 pandemic than how it should be at this point. She then referenced the virus variants, social mixing, and inequitable vaccine distribution as some of the factors.
The Committee echoed Dr. Kerkhove’s statements about the situation. As per a release from the health agency, it noted that the pandemic is “nowhere near finished.”
This is reportedly despite “national, regional, and global efforts” amid the crisis. Accordingly, “a coordinated international response” remains necessary.
An uptick in global cases and deaths
In the same meeting, which took place last July 14, the WHO official shared, as well, the latest case and death figures of the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Kerkhove emphasized that the overall transmissions saw an 11.5 increase over the last week. As for the death toll, it rose to 1 percent.
As of the time of writing, the Worldometer notes that the overall COVID-19 cases have now reached over 192 million. Meanwhile, the total number of deaths is 4,136,737 across the globe.
Delta variant is one of the factors
The Delta variant of the coronavirus is one of the driving factors of the current case surges in various countries. It has forced many countries, including even those that were already doing well, to reimpose measures and lockdowns.
The variant, which experts first found in India, has now spread across 111 countries. While the vaccines are said to be effective, inequitable distribution and hesitancy over them have appeared to hamper the efforts to reach the conclusion of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Images courtesy of World Health Organization (WHO)/YouTube