Coronavirus: WHO Declares Pandemic

The World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday declared the widespread coronavirus (COVID-19) as a pandemic. It has spread to 114 countries with 118,000 cases reported so far.

“We are deeply concerned both by the alarming levels of spread and severity, and by the alarming levels of inaction,” Tedros Adhanom, director general of the WHO said. “We have called every day for countries to take urgent and aggressive action,” he added.

Adhanom, however, said that the spread of the virus can still be controlled, pointing out that outbreaks are declining in both China and South Korea.

The last time WHO declared a pandemic was during the H1N1 outbreak in 2009, which infected 25 per cent of the world’s population. However, the WHO was criticized for that decision as it created unnecessary panic. SARS and MERS were not considered a pandemic, despite affecting people in 26 countries.

Just before the announcement, India banned all tourist visas to the country till April 15.