WHO scientists call for ‘realistic’ China Covid data at key meeting amid worries over spread
- World Health Organization has invited Chinese scientists to a virtual closed meeting, to present data on which coronavirus variants are circulating
- ‘We want to see more realistic picture of what is actually going on’; some data ‘not very credible’, and it’s in ‘interests of China itself’ to offer more ‘reliable information’
Leading scientists advising the World Health Organization said they wanted a “more realistic picture” about the Covid-19 situation from China’s top experts at a key meeting on Tuesday as worries grow about the rapid spread of the virus.
The WHO has invited Chinese scientists to a virtual closed meeting with its technical advisory group on viral evolution on Tuesday, to present data on which variants are circulating in the country. It is not open to the public or media.
China lifted its “zero-Covid” measures in December 2022. Covid cases are now surging, although official data is patchy.
“We want to see a more realistic picture of what is actually going on,” said Professor Marion Koopmans, a Dutch virologist who sits on the WHO committee. Speaking to Reuters ahead of the meeting, she said some of the data from China, such as hospitalisation numbers, is “not very credible”.
“It is in the interests of China itself to come forward with more reliable information.”
Professor Tulio de Oliveira, a South African scientist who also sits on the committee and whose team has detected a number of new variants, said “of course” it would be good to get more information from China, but this also applies globally.
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