“Last week, COVID-19 claimed a life every three minutes – and that’s just the deaths we know about”, said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, briefing the media at the agency’s headquarters in Geneva. According to WHO’s Coronavirus Dashboard which has collated key statistics since early in the pandemic, the cumulative cases worldwide now stand at 765,222,932, with nearly seven million deaths: the precise figure currently… Read More

“It is welcome news that health systems in the majority of countries are starting to restore essential health services for millions of people who missed them during the pandemic,” said Dr. Rudi Eggers, director for integrated health services at the World Health Organization (WHO). “But, we need to ensure that all countries continue to close this gap to recover health… Read More

Over the course of two weeks of meetings, countries are expected to make progress on adding new so-called “forever chemicals” to the list of toxic substances to be banned or restricted under the Stockholm Convention – the global treaty protecting human health and the environment from long-lasting chemical pollution. They will also seek ways to further regulate the use of… Read More

The guidance provides a joined-up approach for responding to the threat or arrival of any respiratory pathogen such as flu or the range of coronaviruses, that have the ability to rapidly mutate into different variants. The new Preparedness and Resilience for Emerging Threats Initiative, or PRET, incorporates the latest tools and approaches for shared learning and collective action established during the COVID-19 pandemic, and… Read More