The Covid-19 pandemic is far from over as the world is seeing 1.5 million new cases each day, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said Friday.
Large outbreaks are spreading in Asia, and a new wave is sweeping across Europe. Some countries are reporting their highest death rates since the start of the pandemic, he added.
The spread of Omicron – now surging in the form of the BA2 variant in many parts of the world – was a startling reminder of how quickly Covid can mutate and spread – especially in the absence of high vaccination coverage, the UN chief said.
A third of the planet is still lacking even one dose, and yet, some high-income countries are preparing for their second booster doses.
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"This is a brutal indictment of our deeply unequal world. It's also a prime breeding ground for new variants, more deaths, and increased human and economic misery," Guterres said.
"We are far from our target of every country reaching 70 percent vaccination coverage by the middle of this year. And with new variants emerging roughly every four months, time is of the essence."
