Covid-19 related deaths dropped to 90% since February: WHO

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• Nov 10, 2022 | Dhupali Das

Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that more than 9,400 deaths connected to the coronavirus were...

Digital Desk: The World Health Organization chief said on Wednesday that a nearly 90% decline in recent COVID-19 deaths globally compared to nine months ago is "cause for optimism," but he still advised caution against the pandemic as variants continue to crop up.

Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that more than 9,400 deaths connected to the coronavirus were reported to the WHO last week. He said that the number of deaths each week had exceeded 75,000 in February of this year.

"We have made great progress, and this is definitely a reason for hope. But we still urge everyone to exercise caution," he said, speaking during a televised news conference from the WHO's headquarters in Geneva.

“Almost 10,000 deaths a week is 10,000 too many for a disease that can be prevented and treated," he added. 

The WHO chief stated that worldwide testing and sequencing rates are still low, immunization gaps between wealthy and developing nations are still wide, and new variants are constantly being discovered at an alarming rate.

The U.N. health agency said that the number of newly registered COVID-19 cases worldwide came in at over 2.1 million  2.1 million for the week ending Sunday, a 15% decrease from the previous week. In comparison to the previous week, there were 10% fewer deaths per week. 

Overall, the WHO has estimated 629 million cases and 6.5 million deaths linked to the pandemic.

The WHO's technical head on COVID-19, Maria Van Kerkhove, cited a "significant estimate" of the virus's true spread as testing and surveillance had decreased along with a decline in case figures. She stated that the coronavirus outbreak is still a pandemic that is propagating fairly widely over the world and that hospitalizations and deaths are a major focus right now.

Japan had the most newly reported cases this week, with more than 401,000, a 42% rise from the previous week. Korea, United States, Germany, and China were next, with more than 219,000 new cases over the course of the week, a 15% decrease from the week prior.

China still experienced 539 deaths attributed to COVID-19 during the week, a 10% increase from the week before.

While its numbers have remained relatively low, China has ruthlessly followed a stringent zero-COVID policy of quarantines, lockdowns, and daily or near-daily mandatory testing, which has occasionally sparked protests and conflicts between people and officials.