"This virus is here to stay. It is still killing, and it is still changing. The risk remains of new variants emerging that cause new surges in cases and deaths," he warned, urging countries to not use this news as a reason "to let down their guard, to dismantle the systems built, or to send the message to people that COVID-19 is nothing to worry about," WHO head Tedros Ghebreyesus told a press briefing, APA reports.
He explained that this declaration means that it is time for countries to transition from emergency mode to managing COVID-19 alongside other infectious diseases.
Underlining this was not a "snap" decision, the WHO chief said: "If need be, I will not hesitate to convene another Emergency Committee should COVID-19 once again put our world in peril."