Geneva: The new coronavirus pandemic is clearly 'accelerating', the World Health Organisation warned on Monday, but said it was still possible to 'change the trajectory' of the outbreak.
"The pandemic is accelerating," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told journalists in a virtual news briefing, saying "it took 67 days from the first reported case to reach the first 100,000 cases, 11 days for the second 100,000 cases and just four days for the third 100,000 cases."
But he said that "We are not helpless bystanders. We can change the trajectory of this pandemic."
He added that a shortage of personal protective equipment for health workers was leaving them vulnerable to the new coronavirus and urged G20 countries to pull together to address the problem.
He noted that measures put in place to slow the spread of the virus may be exacerbating shortages of essential protective gear and the materials
Tedros said that he would speak with heads of state and government from the G20 countries, saying he would ask them to help increase production, avoid export bans, and ensure fair distribution of "lifesaving tools" that are facing a growing shortage.
AP
