Omicron Covid variant poses very high global risk, says WHO

The threat posed by the “highly mutated” Omicron variant shows what a “perilous and precarious” situation the world is in, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) has said, as he warned that the pandemic would not end until every country has access to vaccines. 

In his first substantial comments since the emergence of the new variant last week, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said it illustrated how  hard-won gains could vanish in an instant". 

Addressing a special session of the World Health Assembly, he said the emergence of Omicron served as a reminder that “Covid-19 is not done with us". 

Earlier on Monday the WHO said the Omicron variant was likely to spread internationally, posing a very high global risk of infection surges that could have severe consequences in some areas. 

The UN agency urged its 194 member states to accelerate vaccination of high-priority groups and, in anticipation of increased case numbers, to “ensure mitigation plans are in place” to maintain essential health services. 

Tedros said the pandemic would not be over until what he called the “vaccine crisis” had ended, highlighting that low-income countries had received just 0.6% of the world’s Covid vaccines. G20 countries had received 80%, he said, adding that “no country can vaccinate its way out of the pandemic alone".