WHO Director-General's opening remarks at the media briefing on COVID-19 and Ukraine – 9 March 2022
Good morning, good afternoon and good evening.
This Friday marks two years since we said that the global spread of COVID-19 could be characterised as a pandemic.
As a reminder, we made that assessment six weeks after we declared COVID-19 a global health emergency – when there were fewer than 100 cases, and no deaths outside China.
Two years later, more than 6 million people have died.
Although reported cases and deaths are declining globally, and several countries have lifted restrictions, the pandemic is far from over – and it will not be over anywhere until it’s over everywhere
Many countries in Asia and the Pacific are facing surges of cases and deaths.
The virus continues to evolve, and we continue to face major obstacles in distributing vaccines, tests and treatments everywhere they are needed.
WHO is concerned that several countries are drastically reducing testing.
This inhibits our ability to see where the virus is, how it’s spreading and how it’s evolving.
Testing remains a vital tool in our fight against the pandemic, as part of a comprehensive strategy.
Today, WHO has published new guidance on self-testing for COVID-19, recommending that self-tests should be offered in addition to professionally-administered testing services.
This recommendation is based on evidence that shows users can reliably and accurately self-test, and that self-testing may reduce inequalities in testing access.
How countries use self-testing will need to be adapted according to national priorities, local epidemiology, and the availability of resources, with community input.
We hope that our new guidance will also help to increase access to testing, which is too expensive for many low-income countries, where these tools could play an important role in expanding testing.
WHO and its partners in the ACT Accelerator are urgently seeking further funding to ensure that all countries that need self-tests will be able to receive them as quickly as possible.
In readiness for these guidelines, WHO has contacted manufacturers to encourage them to apply for prequalification of self-tests.
To date, WHO has granted emergency use listing to 5 rapid antigen tests for professional use, and we are gathering additional data to support the use of self-tests.
Now, to Ukraine.
So far, WHO has delivered 81 metric tons of supplies, and WHO is establishing a pipeline of supplies for health facilities throughout Ukraine, especially in the most affected areas.
Yesterday, we delivered five metric tons of medical supplies to Kyiv to support surgical care for 150 trauma patients, and other supplies to manage a range of health conditions for 45 thousand people for a month.
More supplies will be distributed today, and we have 400 cubic metres of supplies waiting to be transported to Ukraine from our logistics hub in Dubai.
So far, WHO has verified 18 attacks on health facilities, health workers and ambulances, including 10 deaths and 16 injuries.
These attacks deprive whole communities of health care.
More than 2 million people have left Ukraine, and WHO is supporting neighbouring countries to provide health care for refugees, most of whom are women and children.
Some of the main health challenges we see are hypothermia and frostbite, respiratory diseases, lack of treatment for cardiovascular diseases and cancer, and mental health issues.
WHO personnel have been deployed to neighbouring countries to provide mental health and psychosocial support.
I thank all my WHO colleagues, and all our partners in Ukraine and its neighbours and all over the world, who continue to work to protect and promote health, even in the most difficult situations.
But the only real solution to this situation is peace.
WHO continues to call on the Russian Federation to commit to a peaceful resolution to this crisis, and to allow safe, unimpeded access to humanitarian assistance for those in need.
A peaceful resolution is possible – and that is true in every war and humanitarian crisis to which WHO is responding around the world.
Christian, back to you.
About WHO
The World Health Organization provides global leadership in public health within the United Nations system. Founded in 1948, WHO works with 194 Member States, across six regions and from more than 150 offices, to promote health, keep the world safe and serve the vulnerable. Our goal for 2019-2023 is to ensure that a billion more people have universal health coverage, to protect a billion more people from health emergencies, and provide a further billion people with better health and wellbeing.