World Health Organisation Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, announced earlier this evening that WHO has declared Covid-19 as a pandemic.

Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stressed that “we have never before seen a pandemic sparked by a coronavirus. This is the first pandemic caused by a coronavirus.” He added, “and we have never before seen a pandemic that can be controlled, at the same time.”

Speaking to the media, he said that in the past two weeks, the number of cases of COVID-19 outside China has increased 13-fold, and the number of affected countries has tripled.

“There are now more than 118,000 cases in 114 countries, and 4,291 people have lost their lives. Thousands more are fighting for their lives in hospitals, he said.

The WHO chief went on to say that “in the days and weeks ahead, we expect to see the number of cases, the number of deaths, and the number of affected countries climb even higher.”

WHO has been assessing this outbreak around the clock, he said, “and we are deeply concerned both by the alarming levels of spread and severity, and by the alarming levels of inaction.”

Pandemic is not a word to use lightly or carelessly, he said. “It is a word that, if misused, can cause unreasonable fear, or unjustified acceptance that the fight is over, leading to unnecessary suffering and death.”

“Describing the situation as a pandemic does not change WHO’s assessment of the threat posed by this virus. It doesn’t change what WHO is doing, and it doesn’t change what countries should do.”

He said that “WHO has been in full response mode since we were notified of the first cases. And we have called every day for countries to take urgent and aggressive action.”

“We have rung the alarm bell loud and clear,” he said. “We cannot say this loudly enough, or clearly enough, or often enough: all countries can still change the course of this pandemic.”

The WHO chief stressed that “if countries detect, test, treat, isolate, trace, and mobilise their people in the response, those with a handful of cases can prevent those cases becoming clusters, and those clusters becoming community transmission.”

“Even those countries with community transmission or large clusters can turn the tide on this virus,” he said. “Several countries have demonstrated that this virus can be suppressed and controlled.”

Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated, “the challenge for many countries who are now dealing with large clusters or community transmission is not whether they can do the same – it’s whether they will.”

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