WHO urges China to finally share data on Covid origins five years later
The World Health Organization on Monday called on China to share data and access to help understand the origins of Covid-19, five years after the start of the pandemic that rocked the planet.
“We continue to call on China to share data and access so we can understand the origins of Covid-19. This is a moral and scientific imperative,” the WHO said in a statement statement.
Covid-19 killed more than seven million people, fragmented economies and crippled healthcare systems.
“Without transparency, sharing and cooperation among countries, the world cannot adequately prevent and prepare for future epidemics and pandemics,” the WHO said.
The WHO told how its country office in China received a media statement from health authorities in Wuhan on December 31, 2019 about cases of ‘viral pneumonia’ in the city.
“In the weeks, months and years that unfolded, Covid-19 came to shape our lives and our world,” the UN health agency said.
“As we celebrate this milestone, let us take a moment to honor the lives changed and lost, recognize those suffering from Covid-19 and Long Covid, express our gratitude to the healthcare workers who have sacrificed so much to care for us concerns, and commit to learning from Covid-19 to build a healthier future.”
Earlier this month, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus discussed whether the world was better prepared for the next pandemic than for Covid-19.
“The answer is yes and no,” he told a news conference.
“If the next pandemic were to break out today, the world would still be facing the same weaknesses and vulnerabilities that gave Covid-19 a foothold five years ago.
“But the world has also learned many of the painful lessons the pandemic has taught us, and has taken important steps to strengthen its defenses against future epidemics and pandemics.”
In December 2021, countries, shocked by the devastation caused by Covid, decided to start drafting an agreement on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response.
The 194 WHO member states negotiating the treaty have agreed on most of what the treaty should cover, but are stuck on the practical aspects.
A major fault line lies between Western countries with large pharmaceutical sectors and poorer countries that are wary of being left out when the next pandemic hits.
While there are few outstanding issues, they include the core of the agreement: the obligation to quickly share emerging pathogens, and then the resulting benefits in fighting pandemics, such as vaccines. The deadline for negotiations is May 2025.