The virus causing COVID-19 is here to stay but the world is beginning to transition out of the emergency phase of the pandemic, the World Health Organization’s chief said on Wednesday.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a briefing that the UN agency will publish a guide for countries next week on how to move from an emergency response to the long-term management of COVID-19.
“We remain hopeful that sometime this year, we will be able to declare an end to COVID-19 as a public health emergency of international concern,” said Tedros.
“But this virus is here to stay and all countries will need to learn to manage it alongside other infectious diseases.”
— Reporting by Jennifer Rigby and Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber. Editing by Jane Merriman