WHO Says Slowly Lifting Lockdowns Key to Reviving Economies, But Restrictions Still Needed

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 11th May, 2020) Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Monday said that slowly removing lockdowns is key to reviving economies, noting a "great deal of success" in slowing the spread of the coronavirus, but added that control measures are still needed.

"The good news is that there has been a great deal of success in slowing the virus and ultimately saving lives. However, such strong measures have come at a cost, and we recognize the serious socio-economic impact of the lockdowns, which have had a detrimental effect on many people's lives. Therefore, to protect lives and livelihoods, a slow steady lifting of lockdowns is key to both stimulating economies while also keeping a vigilant eye on the virus so control measures can be quickly implemented if an upswing in cases is identified," Tedros said at a press conference.

The WHO head added that before lifting restrictions, the countries should first answer three questions on whether the epidemic is under control, whether the health system is able to cope with a resurgence of COVID-19 cases after relaxing measures and whether the public surveillance system is able to detect and manage the cases and contacts, as well as identify a resurgence of cases.

Over the past weeks, several countries started gradually lifting restrictions introduced to curb the spread of the coronavirus amid improving epidemiological situation.

As of Monday, the WHO recorded more than 4 million cases of the disease across the world, including 278,892 fatalities.