The World Health Organization (WHO) cautioned on Thursday that vaccination rates in Europe were remained far below what was required to prevent a viral recurrence, and urged governments to maintain precautionary measures.
In the WHO’s European Region, which includes many countries in Central Asia, 30 percent of individuals have gotten at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine, and 17 percent have been completely vaccinated, according to the organization.
“We have gone a long way, but we haven’t come far enough,” Hans Kluge, WHO’s regional director for Europe, said during a news conference.
“Vaccination coverage is far from adequate to keep the region safe from a recurrence. There is still a long way to go before obtaining at least 80% coverage of the adult population “Kluge elaborated.
He highlighted that the area has experienced an overall drop in new cases, hospitalizations, and fatalities for two months in a row, but encouraged governments not to repeat the “error” of last summer by reducing measures too soon, resulting in a comeback in the autumn.
“Over the course of last summer, cases steadily increased in younger age groups before moving into older age groups, resulting to a disastrous resurgence, lockdowns, and loss of life in the autumn and winter of 2020,” Kluge added.
He urged governments to apply “last year’s lessons,” such as acting quickly on signs of increased infections, extending testing and contact tracing, and “rapidly reaching extremely high vaccination uptake in the most susceptible groups.”
He also urged people to “enjoy the summer safely” by following health precautions.
AFP
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