The coronavirus is no longer a global health emergency, the World Health Organization (WHO) has announced, a major step towards ending the pandemic that has killed more than 6,9 million people, disrupted the global economy and devastated communities.
"Yesterday, the Emergency Situations Committee met for the 15th time and recommended that I declare the end of a public health emergency of international concern. I accepted that advice. It is therefore with great hope that I declare the end of COVID-19 as a global health emergency," said the general WHO Director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
WHO's Emergency Committee first declared COVID its highest level of alert more than three years ago, on 30 January 2020. The status helps focus international attention on the health threat, as well as strengthen cooperation on vaccines and treatment .
The cancellation is a sign of the progress the world has made in these areas, but COVID-19 is here to stay, the WHO said, even if it is no longer an emergency.
The death rate has slowed from a peak of more than 100.000 people a week in January 2021 to just over 3.500 in the week to April 24, according to WHO data.
"However, this does not mean that COVID-19 is over as a global health threat," Gebrejesus said.
The WHO does not declare the beginning or end of the pandemic, although it began using the term for COVID in March 2020.
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