BERLIN: World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus praised on Friday Japan's ongoing efforts, led by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, to contain the epidemic of the new coronavirus.

Japan is "demonstrating that a whole-of-government approach led by Prime Minister Abe himself, supported by in-depth investigation of clusters, is a critical step in reducing transmission," Tedros said at a news conference in Geneva.

He expressed his gratitude to Japan for its 155-million-dollar contribution to a WHO program to fight the coronavirus.

Tedros said the experience of China, South Korea, Singapore and others demonstrates that "aggressive testing and contact tracing" can prevent infections and save lives.

Meanwhile, he said, "Europe has now become the epicenter of the pandemic, with more reported cases and deaths than the rest of the world combined, apart from China."

JIJI Press