The World Health Organization on Wednesday warned that the Coronavirus crisis would not end any time soon, with many countries only in the early stages of the fight, as the global death toll surpassed 180,000.
The pandemic has sparked not only a health emergency, but a global economic rout, with businesses struggling to survive, millions left jobless, and millions more facing starvation.
Health experts in the world’s biggest economy warned it could face an even deadlier second Coronavirus wave come winter.
Nations around the world have been scrambling to fight the pandemic — which has killed more than 180,000 people and infected nearly 2.6 million worldwide — while desperately seeking ways to limit the devastating economic fallout.
As some countries have moved to lift lockdown restrictions that have upended daily life around the globe, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus issued a sober warning.
“Make no mistake: we have a long way to go. This virus will be with us for a long time,” Tedros told a virtual press conference.
“Most countries are still in the early stages of their epidemics. And some that were affected early in the pandemic are now starting to see a resurgence in cases.”
Among those hardest hit economically during the crisis are millions of migrant workers who toil abroad to send money back home to their families.
The pandemic shutdowns mean even the bodies of some migrant workers cannot be sent home, and are instead being buried or cremated in the country where they die — often without any loved ones present.
