The head of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, commenting on the coronavirus outbreak said that the world is in ‘uncharted territories’; he added that although the virus was unique, it was still possible to contain it’s outbreak.
Today, there are 90,000 cases in 70 countries with around 90 percent of all cases residing in China. Of the 8,800 affected individuals outside China, 81 percent can be found in four countries: Iran, South Korea, Italy, and Japan.
Officially, the death toll has surpassed 3,000 human beings in total, and even though most are in China, nowadays, it is nine times more likely to find new infections outside China than inside.
In the Arab World, Kuwait has the highest number of confirmed cases at 56; on the other hand, the virus is still to come to Mauritania, Libya, Sudan, and Yemen.
According to the World Health Organization, the COVID-19 affects the elderly and people who are already ill. Most patients have only mild symptoms and as to the death rate appears to be between 2 and 5 percent.
To compare, the seasonal flu has a death rate of about 0.1 percent, but because of its high virality, it causes the death of 400,000 people each year around the world. The Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (Sars) and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (Mers), which are other strains of the coronavirus, have much higher mortality rates than COVID-19.
More people are worried about the coronavirus becoming a global pandemic; to understand how the virus is affecting each country, this infographic map of the world shows each country’s total number of confirmed cases and the number of deaths in live updates.
WHO advises each country to pursue a unique approach to tackle the spread of COVID-19 starting with containment measures and raising awareness.
Dr. Tedros said in a statement that he believes humanity could overcome the coronavirus outbreak, insisting that ‘we can push the virus back’, but governments need to be swift and resourceful. “There is no choice but to act now,” he said.