Warning of a New Dangerous Virus Emergence: WHO Chief

The Director-General of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, has warned the international community about the potential emergence of a new dangerous virus in the future, urging to learn lessons from the coronavirus pandemic. He made this statement in Rome during the G20 meeting of health and finance ministers.

“Even if we put an end to this pandemic, we must learn lessons and prepare for the next one,” he said.

The WHO chief reminded that there is inequality around the world when it comes to vaccine availability. Currently, only 36 percent of the global population is fully vaccinated, with that figure being just 6 percent in Africa.

In order to jointly fight against future threats, the WHO chief urged the leaders of G20 countries to support the establishment of a legally binding international agreement on pandemic preparedness and response. A decision on this is planned to be made at the special session of the World Health Assembly scheduled for November.