WHO declares end of international coronavirus emergency

06-05-23

The moment the world has been waiting for has arrived. The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared an end to the international coronavirus emergency. The Director-General of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom, has made the decision after the Emergency Committee recommended it to him.

1,221 days ago, the World Health Organization declared a public health emergency of international concern over the Covid-19 outbreak. At that time, outside China, there were fewer than 100 reported cases and no deaths. In the three years since then, nearly seven million deaths have been reported, but WHO stresses that "the death toll is at least 20 million," laments Tedros Adhanom.

"Yesterday the Emergency Committee met for the fifteenth time and recommended that I declare an end to the public health emergency of international concern," says the WHO director general. "I have accepted the advice," he adds. However, he stresses that if the current situation changes, he will not hesitate to re-declare the alert.

The World Health Organization will use a provision in the International Health Regulations that has not been used before to establish a Review Committee to develop long-term standing recommendations for countries on how to manage Covid-19 on an ongoing basis. "This is a time for celebration," says the executive director.

This news does not mean that victory should be claimed. "Pandemic fatigue threatens us all. We are fed up with this pandemic and want to put it behind us, but this virus is here to stay and all countries will have to learn to manage it along with other infectious diseases," Tedros Adhanom stressed a few days ago. "There will not come a time when WHO will say the pandemic is over," adds the World Health Organization's Director of Health Emergencies, Michael Ryan.

There are still some critical uncertainties about the evolution of the virus that make it difficult to predict what future transmission of the Coronavirus will look like. Also influential is that surveillance and genetic sequencing has declined significantly worldwide making it difficult to track known and emerging variants in the future. "The worst thing any country could do is to use this news as a reason to lower its guard, dismantle the systems it has built or send the message to its population that Covid-19 is not of concern," Tedros Adhanom stresses.

The keys to the end of the emergency

The president of the Emergency Committee, Didier Housin, has given a series of keys that have led to the end of the health emergency. First of all, he states that although the virus is still circulating, it is not a new disease. Furthermore, although there are gaps in some countries in terms of surveillance, case notification and healthcare, "the situation has improved notably, with lower mortality and a higher level of immunity against the virus, immunity induced by vaccines or naturally, and better access to diagnostics, vaccines and treatments".

Secondly, the experts think it is time to change the tool and leave behind the public health emergency level. The committee is betting on finding a better and more adapted instrument. "It is a matter of opting for permanent recommendations and not only for temporary recommendations. These permanent recommendations will make it possible to better integrate the assessment and management of risks related to the disease," says Housin.

Another reason for announcing the end of the emergency is that committee members are convinced that it is possible for the WHO to send messages to member states and the public that the transition from one status to another is not indicative of "letting down one's guard".

Yesterday, the health agency said that over the past ten weeks, the number of weekly deaths has been the lowest since the beginning of the pandemic. "This sustained trend has allowed life to return to normal in most countries and has increased the capacity of health systems to cope with potential resurgences and the burden of post-Coronavirus disease," the director general said.