After deaths, WHO urges Tanzania to share COVID data, take action

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged Dodoma to take measures against the pandemic and to prepare for vaccinations.

The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) has urged Tanzania’s authorities to take “robust action” against the coronavirus pandemic amid increasing warnings that the country is witnessing a deadly resurgence in infections. President John Magufuli has long played down the virus, repeatedly claiming that Tanzania defeated COVID-19 with God’s help and refusing to take tough measures to curb its spread. But a recent spate of deaths attributed to pneumonia has struck both members of the public and government officials. On Friday, after months of denial, Magufuli appeared to admit the coronavirus was circulating in Tanzania, a country of some 60 million people.