Younger people driving COVID-19 spread: WHO

Geneva: The proportion of people aged under 50 who are infected with the coronavirus is growing globally, the World Health Organization (WHO) has said.

"The epidemic is changing," WHO's Western Pacific regional director, Takeshi Kasai, told a virtual briefing. "People in their 20s, 30s and 40s are increasingly driving the spread."

He said many of them were not aware they were infected, increasing the risk of their infecting vulnerable people, such as the elderly or those with medical conditions that put them in greater danger of contracting a severe form of COVID-19.

The WHO also warned drugmakers to take all due precautions and carry out all the prescribed research and development steps when producing vaccines against the disease.

Russia this month became the first country in the world to approve a vaccine, but the announcement was met with skepticism from many health authorities, who believe corners were possibly cut in its development.