The coronavirus pandemic is the biggest crisis that the world has witnessed since World War II, the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Tuesday.

Launching the latest study report by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the UN trade and development body titled ‘The Covid-19 Shock to Developing Countries: Towards a ‘whatever it takes,’ Guterres said that the pandemic is one of the most challenging crises that the world has seen in a long time.

"We are facing a global health crisis unlike any in the 75-year history of the United Nations - one that is killing people, spreading human suffering, and upending people's lives," he said.

According to the report, the pandemic will bring about a global recession leading to a loss of trillions of dollars owing to lost income. The economic impact of the crisis and the global shutdown is spelling serious trouble for developing countries with the likely exception of India and China, according to the report. The UN has called for a $2.5 trillion rescue package for these nations.

Last week, the UN chief had launched $2 billion global humanitarian response plan for the world's poorest countries. Emphasising how the global coronavirus pandemic is a threat to the whole of humanity, he urged people to help fight back, especially in regions where the population is already amid the crisis caused by conflicts and climate change.

“Covid-19 is menacing the whole of humanity – and so the whole of humanity must fight back. Individual country responses are not going to be enough. Wealthy countries with strong health systems are buckling under the pressure. Now, the virus is arriving in countries already in the midst of humanitarian crises caused by conflicts, natural disasters and climate change,” Guterres had said.

Over 8,50,000 confirmed cases of Covid-19 have been reported across the globe with the worldwide death toll surpassing 40,000 according to reports.

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