The World Health Organization, WHO, has proclaimed the emergence of a novel coronavirus COVID in China as a global health crisis.
The WHO Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus revealed this development during a press briefing in Geneva.
Reportedly, WHO’s emergency committee convened last Thursday and suggested categorizing the outbreak as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, PHEIC.
Didier Houssin, chair of the emergency committee, stated at the press briefing that the decision was ‘almost unanimous.’
Tedros explained, ‘The primary reason for this declaration is not solely due to the situation in China, but also concerning occurrences in other nations.’
Our main worry centers around the virus’s potential to disseminate to countries with fragile health systems that are ill-equipped to manage it. Let me emphasize, this declaration does not signify a distrust in China. On the flip side, the WHO maintains its confidence in China’s ability to manage the outbreak.’
Tedros also highlighted the recommendations proposed by the emergency committee to mitigate the outbreak, which include hastening the development of vaccines and treatments, as well as tackling the proliferation of misinformation.
This marks the sixth occasion the WHO has applied the term Public Health Emergency of International Concern, PHEIC, since its introduction 15 years ago.