WHO chief scientist warns coronavirus pandemic is not over. Lists main reasons

WHO has been urging nations to exercise abundant caution while relaxing Covid-19 preventative measures once cases start to decline

World Health Organisation’s (WHO) chief scientist Soumya Swaminathan warned that the pandemic is not waning because coronavirus cases are on the rise all over the world as the delta variant is spreading fast. “In the last 24 hours, close to 500,000 new cases have been reported and about 9,300 deaths -- now that’s not a pandemic that’s slowing down,” she said during a televised interview with BloombergQuint.

Soumya Swaminathan said that the delta variant is behind an increase in the number of cases being reported in five out of six WHO regions, (Photo by Raj K Raj/ Hindustan Times)

Swaminathan listed the following reasons for suggesting the pandemic is not over yet.

A fast-spreading delta variant

Swaminathan said that the delta variant is behind an increase in the number of cases being reported in five out of six WHO regions, and in Africa, mortality rates have spiked from 30% to 40%. US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) director Rochelle Walensky also predicted that the delta variant will drive infections in the US in the coming months. "An estimated 25 per cent of all reported SARS-COV-2 sequences nationwide are the Delta variants, and in some regions of the country, nearly one in two sequences is a Delta variant," ANI said quoting Walensky.

WHO director-general, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, had remarked on June 30 that the most transmissible strain of Covid-19, the Delta variant, is spreading mostly in the unvaccinated population. “Delta is the most transmissible of the variants identified so far, has been identified in at least 85 countries, and is spreading rapidly among unvaccinated populations,” Ghebreyesus had warned. He insisted that the only way to break the link between transmission and the emergence of new variants is mass vaccination. WHO has been urging COVAX to help nations ramp up their efforts of vaccination through adequate donations.

Relaxation of safety measures

WHO has been urging nations to exercise abundant caution while relaxing Covid-19 preventative measures once cases start to decline. The UN body has warned against organising big events and “even backyard barbecues.” “All of these actions have consequences and the Delta variant is spreading rapidly among people who are unvaccinated,” said WHO.