Selfadvocatenet.com coverage of the Corona Virus Pandemic

Good morning, good afternoon, and good evening.

At the United Nations General Assembly here in New York, one of the most frequent questions I’m asked is, “Where do we stand? Is the pandemic over?”

At our media briefings over the past two weeks, I have said that pandemic is not over, but the end is in sight.

Both are true.

Being able to see the end does not mean we are at the end.

Yes, we’re in a better position than we’ve ever been. The number of weekly deaths continues to decline, and are now just 10% of what they were at the peak in January 2021;

Two-thirds of the world’s population is vaccinated, including three-quarters of health workers and older people;

In most countries, restrictions have ended and life looks much like it did before the pandemic.

But 10 thousand deaths a week is 10 thousand too many, when most of these deaths could be prevented;

Although population-level immunity has increased, there are still large vaccination gaps, especially in low- and middle-income countries;

And the virus is still spreading, and still changing, with the ever-present risk of more dangerous variants emerging.

We have spent two-and-a-half years in a long, dark tunnel, and we are just beginning to glimpse the light at the end of that tunnel.

But it is still a long way off, and the tunnel is still dark, with many obstacles that could trip us up if we don’t take care.

We all need hope that we can – and we will – get to the end of the tunnel and put the pandemic behind us.

But we’re not there yet. We’re still in the tunnel, and we will only get to the end by focusing on the path ahead, and by moving forward with purpose and care.

The refrain of the pandemic has been that no one is safe until everyone is safe.

That means everyone needs to use, when needed, the simple tools that are available to stay safe: distancing, masks and ventilation;

And it means everyone needs access to the medical tools to stay safe: vaccines, tests and treatments.

That’s still not the case. Just 19% of the population of low-income countries is vaccinated, and access to life-saving treatments is virtually non-existent.

So I welcome today’s announcement by the Global Fund that it has signed an agreement with Pfizer to facilitate access to the antiviral nirmatrelvir/ritonavir, or Paxlovid, for countries through the ACT Accelerator.

It’s overdue, but this is the kind of action that is needed if we are truly to end the pandemic.

Tomorrow I will join two meetings of world leaders here at the UN General Assembly – one hosted by United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and one by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres – to take stock of where we are, and foster stronger political support for equitable access to COVID-19 tools.

Now to Uganda, where health authorities this week declared an outbreak of Ebola disease.

So far, there are seven confirmed cases and one confirmed death, while another seven deaths are being investigated as probable Ebola.

Sixteen people with suspected Ebola disease are receiving care, and contact tracing is ongoing.

WHO’s experts are on the ground, working with Uganda’s experienced Ebola control teams to reinforce diagnosis, treatment and preventive measures.

We are also delivering medical supplies to support the care of patients.

Finally, on monkey pox, the number of weekly reported cases continues to decline.

So far this year, more than 62 thousand laboratory-confirmed cases have been reported to WHO from 105 countries and territories, with 23 deaths.

The trends are encouraging, but as with COVID-19, this is not the time for any country or community to assume those trends will continue.

This is the time to keep doing what works.

Tarik, back to you.