The deadly coronavirus has killed at least 793,983 worldwide. Since the beginning of this year, scientists and researchers have been working around the clock in collaboration with government and health agencies to find a cure for the virus.
With more than 22.85 million COVID-19 confirmed cases reported worldwide, the race for a Covid-19 vaccine is moving at full speed. Globally, there are more than 100 vaccines under development — with at least nine pharmaceutical companies currently working on human clinical trials with the hope to find a lasting cure for the deadly virus.
However, with all eyes on the vaccine, the World Health Organization (WHO) is warning today that a vaccine will be a “vital tool” in the global fight against the coronavirus, but it won’t end the Covid-19 pandemic on its own and there’s no guarantee scientists will find one.
During a media briefing at the agency’s Geneva headquarters, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the world leaders and the public must learn to manage the virus and make permanent adjustments to their daily lives to bring the virus down to low levels. Dr. Tedros said:
“A vaccine will be a vital tool, and we hope that we will have one as soon as possible. But there’s no guarantee that we will, and even if we do have a vaccine, it won’t end the pandemic on its own.”
Dr. Tedros also warned the world leaders not to call for another lockdown measure, saying:
We must all learn to control and manage this virus using the tools we have now, and to make the adjustments to our daily lives that are needed to keep ourselves and each other safe. So-called lockdowns enabled many countries to suppress transmission and take the pressure off their health systems. But lockdowns are not a long-term solution for any country. We do not need to choose between lives and livelihoods, or between health and the economy. That’s a false choice. On the contrary, the pandemic is a reminder that health and the economy are inseparable.
That’s not all, Dr. Tedros also used the coronavirus conference call to discuss climate change.
“In particular, the Covid-19 pandemic has given new impetus to the need to accelerate efforts to respond to climate change,” he said. “The Covid-19 pandemic has given us a glimpse of our world as it could be: cleaner skies and rivers.”
The WHO chief also hopes the coronavirus pandemic will be shorter than the 1918 Spanish flu and lasts less than two years if the world unites and succeeds in finding a vaccine.
