With coronavirus cases on the rise again globally, and the Omicron variant slowly seeping in almost every country, the World Health Organisation (WHO) chief is hopeful that the pandemic can end in 2022. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director-general of the global health body said, "if we end inequity, we end the pandemic."

Hitting on countries over vaccine hoarding amid rising cases, the WHO chief said that narrow nationalism and vaccine hoarding by some countries have undermined equity, and created the ideal conditions for the emergence of the Omicron variant. "The longer inequity continues, the higher the risks of this virus evolving in ways we can’t prevent or predict," Ghebreyesus said.

In a statement issued as the world welcomed 2022, the UN health body chief said as the world enters the third year of this pandemic, "I’m confident that this will be the year we end it but only if we do it together." Call it a threat to decades of progress made in healthcare, he said "Millions of people have missed out on routine vaccination, services for family planning, treatment for communicable and non-communicable diseases, and more."

The head of the World Health Organization has expressed worry over the new cases that he’s worried about the omicron and delta variants of COVID-19 producing a “tsunami” of cases between them. First reported last month in southern Africa, it is already the dominant variant in the United States and parts of Europe.

"I’m highly concerned that omicron being more transmissible (and) circulating at the same time as delta, is leading to a tsunami of cases,” Tedros said at an online news conference. That, he said, will put “immense pressure on exhausted health workers and health systems on the brink of collapse.”

He maintained that Covid-19 is not the only health threat the world’s people will face in 2022. WHO will continue to work around the world to protect and promote the health of everyone, everywhere.

"A new year brings new resolutions. Here is mine, for the world. First, we must end the pandemic. To do that, we need all countries to work together to reach the global target of vaccinating 70 per cent of people in all countries by the middle of 2022," the WHO chief said, advocating the need to build a stronger global framework for global health security.

He further urged all countries to invest in stronger primary healthcare saying, "Covid-19 has demonstrated that when health is at risk, everything is at risk."

As the WHO chief hopes of a better tomorrow, India on Monday reached the 1700 Omicron case tally. Maharashtra has reported 510 cases so far while Delhi has reported 351 patients.

Source: India Today