The COVID-19 pandemic is far from over, according to the World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom.

Tedros said in a briefing on Wednesday that while some people across the world are eager for a return to normalcy, care should be taken in effecting any resumptions of normal lives.

"Make no mistake: We have a long way to go. This virus will be with us for a long time," the WHO chief said.

Tedros also said that WHO declared COVID-19 a global emergency, the highest level of alert, at the right time when there were only 82 cases outside of China, and when the rest of world had enough time to respond. 

The WHO chief also noted that some regions in Western Europe were beginning to see a decline in the COVID-19 numbers, but worryingly, there is an upward trend in Africa, Central and South America, as well as Eastern Europe.

"Most countries are still in the early stages of their epidemics," he said.

"There's no question that Stay Home orders and other physical distancing measures have successfully suppressed transmission in many countries. But this virus remains extremely dangerous."

Wednesday's briefing came as the global COVID-19 death toll surpassed 180,000, with the number of confirmed cases exceeding 2.6 million.

Tedros warned that "most of the world's population remains susceptible. That means epidemics can easily re-ignite."

Source(s): World Health Organization