Although the variant omicron the coronavirus is causing figures of daily infections never seen until now, the WHO remains hopeful of ending the “acute phase” of the pandemic in the coming year.
This is how its CEO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, highlighted this Wednesday: “I remain optimistic that this It may be the year that we not only end the acute phase of the pandemic, but we also trace the path to stronger health security “, he highlighted at a press conference.
It, in full explosion of COVID-19 cases: From December 22 to 26, the barrier of 900,000 daily cases was broken, surpassing the previous record reached in April (894,000), while the omicron variant, more contagious than the delta, is becoming the dominant one in many countries.
In this sense, Ghebreyesus has expressed his concern about the greater transmissibility of omicron, “circulating at the same time as the delta variant”, which is leading to “a tsunami of cases” something puts “immense pressure” on “exhausted toilets and healthcare systems on the brink of collapse.”
However, the number of global deaths remains in the current wave between 4,000 and 8,000 daily, figures that have not increased with the new variant and that are similar to those of the last three months.
The case of South Africa
Another figure that invites some hope is the fact that last week the cases in South Africa, the first country detected the omicron variant, fell by around 30%, according to the WHO. “We trust that cases will drop in other countries as they have in South Africa“, highlighted in this regard the director of Health Emergencies of the organization, Mike Ryan, who has also been optimistic for the coming months, provided that the race for a more equal distribution of vaccines continues.
“It is difficult for the virus to be completely eliminated, but it will possibly change to a lower level transmission pattern, causing occasional outbreaks in unvaccinated populations, “the Irish expert predicted.” Let’s hope that is the end, but we are certainly not there yet and there are still obstacles to we hope to overcome achieving equality in the distribution of vaccines, “he added.
Mario Twitchell is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his insightful and thought-provoking writing on a wide range of topics including general and opinion. He currently works as a writer at 247 news agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
