The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared an international
public health emergency over the outbreak of the deadly coronavirus.
The announcement was made on Thursday after a meeting between Health experts and the WHO emergency committee in Geneva.
Speaking to reporters, WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom
Ghebreyesus said: ‘The main reason for this declaration is not because
of what is happening in China, but because of what is happening in other
countries.
‘Our greatest concern is the potential for the virus to spread to
countries with weaker health systems, and which are ill-prepared to deal
with it.’
This comes a week after WHO said it was ‘too early’ to declare an
international public health emergency but on Thursday it was revealed
that the action was needed to help countries to prepare for the
possibility of it spreading further.
About 213 people have died in China after contracting the coronavirus with 9,692 others infected around the world.