Share Covid data, World Health Organization tells China

In its statement, the WHO went back to the early days of Covid and traced its evolution from a local phenomenon to a global scourge, leading to lockdowns around the world and the ultimately successful race to develop vaccines.

“Five years ago on 31 December 2019, WHO’s Country Office in China picked up a media statement by the Wuhan Municipal Health Commission from their website on cases of ‘viral pneumonia’ in Wuhan, China,” the organisation said.

“In the weeks, months and years that unfolded after that, Covid-19 came to shape our lives and our world,” it went on.

The WHO said it “went to work immediately” as 2020 dawned. It recalled how its employees activated emergency systems on 1 January and informed the world three days later.

“By 9-12 January, WHO had published its first set of comprehensive guidance for countries, and on 13 January, we brought together partners to publish the blueprint of the first Sars-CoV-2 laboratory test,” it added.

The WHO said it wanted to “honour the lives changed and lost, recognise those who are suffering from Covid-19 and long Covid, express gratitude to the health workers who sacrificed so much to care for us, and commit to learning from Covid-19 to build a healthier tomorrow”.