2021 Year in Review: We Underestimate this Virus at our Peril

True to the UN’s warning about a fast-spreading COVID-19 variant, the Omicron reared its ugly head marking itself as a major concern across the world affecting global economic reopening, and was mentioned that it is spreading faster than the Delta variant.

But whilst the fears were understandable, the arrival of Omicron shouldn’t have been a surprise, given the consistent warnings from the UN that new mutations were inevitable, given the failure of the international community to ensure that everyone, not just the citizens of wealthy countries, are vaccinated.

The WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, warned that Omicron was “spreading at a rate we have not seen with any previous variant…Surely we have learned by now, that we underestimate this virus at our peril.”

Despite the almost miraculous fast development of efficient vaccines against COVID-19 in the 2020, the virus continued to spread and mutate throughout the last year, and it is noticeable that the blame is placed on a lack of effective global collaboration as a key reason that prolongs the pandemic.

This year of 2021, there are also seen UN-backed programs to support the other developing countries to protect their populations against the virus, and the steps were taken to prepare for future pandemic or any global health crisis.