Associated Press, Thursday 12 May 2022
GENEVA (AP) — The number of new coronavirus cases reported worldwide has continued to fall except in the Americas and Africa, The World Health Organization (WHO) said in its latest assessment of the pandemic. In its weekly pandemic report, the UN health agency said about 3.5 million new cases and more than 25,000 deaths were reported globally, which respectively represent decreases of 12% and 25%. The downward trend in reported infections began in March, although many countries have dismantled their widespread testing and surveillance programmes, making an accurate count of cases extremely difficult.
The WHO said there were only two regions where reported COVID-19 infections increased: the Americas, by 14%, and Africa, by 12%. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned that “the rising cases in more than 50 countries highlights the volatility of this virus.” He said COVID-19 variants, including mutated versions of the highly infectious Omicron, are driving a resurgence in several countries. WHO’s report noted that some of the biggest jumps in COVID-19 cases were seen in China, which saw a 145% rise in the last week. Chinese authorities doubled down on pandemic restrictions in Shanghai after a brief period of loosening up. On Thursday, North Korea announced its first coronavirus outbreak and imposed a nationwide lockdown — the size of the outbreak wasn’t immediately known, but could have serious consequences because the country has a poor health care system and its 26 million people are believed to be mostly unvaccinated.