WHO assures of reviewing its coronavirus response

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has announced that it it would launch an independent review of its handling of the coronavirus pandemic.

Washington is locked in an increasingly bitter spat with Beijing over the new coronavirus pandemic and has also taken aim at the WHO, which kicked off its first ever virtual assembly.

A resolution tabled by the European Union called for an “impartial, independent and comprehensive evaluation” of the international response to the pandemic, which has so far infected nearly 4.8 million people and killed more than 317,000.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus acknowledged there had been shortcomings and told the virtual assembly he welcomed calls for a review.

“I will initiate an independent evaluation at the earliest appropriate moment to review experience gained and lessons learned, and to make recommendations to improve national and global pandemic preparedness and response,” he said.

“But one thing is abundantly clear. The world must never be the same.

“We do not need a review to tell us that we must all do everything in our power to ensure this never happens again,” Tedros said.