NEW DELHI: The World Health Organisation (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Friday said that the curbs on travellers from China by various countries are "understandable" in the absence of comprehensive information from the ground.
His remarks came as several countries from the US to South Korea have placed restrictions on air travellers from China, which is seeing a massive Covid surge but has not revealed data.
India also has made it mandatory for international travellers from China and five other hotspots nations, Hong Kong, South Korea, Thailand, Japan and Singapore, to carry Covid negative test reports. Also, the Covid test needs to be done 72 hours before arrival to India. The rule will be applied from January 1.
India has already started conducting random testing of two per cent of international travellers from these countries.
In his tweet, the WHO chief said, “In the absence of comprehensive information from #China, it is understandable that countries around the world are acting in ways that they believe may protect their populations.”
He said the WHO is "very concerned over the evolving situation in China."
"We continue encouraging China to track the #COVID19 virus and vaccinate the highest risk people. We continue to offer our support for clinical care and protecting its health system," Ghebreyesus added.
He also appealed for specific data on disease severity, hospital admissions and intensive care requirements.
His reaction came after China's National Health Commission (NHC) stopped publishing daily Covid-19 case data, handing over the charge to the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
“Gaps in our understanding of post COVID19 conditions mean we don’t understand how best to treat people suffering from the long-term consequences of infection. Gaps in our understanding of how this pandemic began to compromise our ability to prevent future pandemics,” the WHO chief had said during a weekly press conference.
“We continue to call on China to share the data and conduct the studies we have requested and which we continue to request. As I have said many times, all hypotheses about the origins of this pandemic remain on the table,” he added.
Last week, the WHO chief said he is “hopeful” that the Covid-19 pandemic will no longer be considered a global health emergency next year.
“We’re hopeful that at some point next year, we will be able to say that COVID-19 is no longer a global health emergency,” the chief said.