The World Health Organisation (WHO) is concerned that some countries are not approaching Covid-19 with the level of political commitment needed to control it, director-general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Thursday.

He said Covid-19 was declared a pandemic, firstly, because of the speed and scale of transmission.

"The second reason is that despite our frequent warnings, we are deeply concerned that some countries are not approaching this threat with the level of political commitment needed to control it."

"This is a controllable pandemic. Countries that decide to give up on fundamental public health measures may end up with a larger problem, and a heavier burden on the health system that requires more severe measures to control."

He said all countries must strike a fine balance between protecting health, preventing economic and social disruption, and respecting human rights.

"We’re working with the World Economic Forum and the International Chambers of Commerce to engage the private sector. We’re also working with (football’s world governing body) FIFA,"he said.

"We’re working with our colleagues across the [United Nations] system to support countries to develop their preparedness and response plans...."

The WHO said there were almost 125,000 cases of Covid-19 reported from 118 countries.