The World Health Organisation’s (WHO) 2025 World Health Statistics report has revealed that COVID-19 has caused a significant drop in global life expectancy, reversing a decade’s worth of life advancement.
According to the report, the global life expectancy between 2019 and 2021 dropped by 1.8 years, which is the largest decline in recent history, reversing a decade of progress.
It added that increased anxiety and depression due to COVID-19 reduced global healthy life expectancy by 6 weeks, erasing most gains from lower mortality rates due to non-communicable diseases (NCDs).
The global health body explained that life expectancy is the average number of years a newborn is expected to live based on current mortality trends, making it a crucial indicator of a population’s overall health and well-being.
It warned that overall progress is under threat and urgent global action is needed to get back on track.
The WHO Director-General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, lamented the negligence on the preventable diseases that led to the decline in life expectancy and called for urgent action from all governments.
He said, “Behind every data point is a person, a child who didn’t reach their fifth birthday, a mother lost in childbirth, a life cut short by a preventable disease.
“These are avoidable tragedies. They point to critical gaps in access, protection, and investment, especially for women and girls. Health progress is slowing. Every government has a responsibility to act with urgency, commitment, and accountability to the people they serve.”
The report also presented mixed progress towards WHO’s Triple Billion Targets (an initiative targeted at improving billions of lives), noting that despite an estimated 1.4 billion more people living healthier lives by 2024, the progress towards increased coverage of essential health services and protection from emergencies has been slow.
It added, however, that only 431 million more people gained access to essential health services without financial hardship, and close to 637 million more people were better protected from health emergencies.
It also revealed that progress in reducing maternal and child deaths has stalled, with millions of lives at risk due to underinvestment in primary healthcare, shortages of skilled health workers, and gaps in services.
“Maternal and child deaths are not falling fast enough to reach global targets. Progress has stalled, putting millions of lives at risk. This slowdown follows two decades of remarkable gains: between 2000 and 2023, maternal deaths dropped by over 40% and child deaths under 5 years of age more than halved. But underinvestment in primary health care, shortages of skilled health workers, and gaps in services like immunisation and safe childbirth are now holding countries back,” the report stated.
Speaking on chronic diseases that led to more loss of lives, the report revealed that premature deaths from NCDs like heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and cancer are rising, driven by population growth and ageing, and account for most deaths among people under the age of 70 worldwide. It further revealed that the world is currently off track to reduce NCD premature mortality by one-third by 2030.
However, it noted that progress has been possible where governments and civil society have committed to action, noting that in such areas, tobacco use is declining and global alcohol consumption has dropped from 5.7 to 5.0 litres per capita between 2010 and 2022.
But it further emphasised that air pollution remains one of the top causes of preventable death worldwide and that the impact of poor mental health has continued to hold back progress.
The report also highlighted a health workforce shortage – a projected shortfall of 11.1 million health workers by 2030, with nearly 70% of the gap in the WHO African and Eastern Mediterranean regions – as a bridge to completing essential health services.
“Recovery in essential health services remains incomplete. A shortfall of 11.1 million health workers is still projected by 2030, with nearly 70% of the gap concentrated in the WHO African and Eastern Mediterranean regions,” the report said.
“Strong health systems rely on strong health information. Timely, trusted data drives better decisions and faster results. WHO is supporting countries through the SCORE strategy to strengthen health information systems and through the World Health Data Hub, which is helping to standardise, improve, and unlock the value of data across countries and systems,” said WHO Unit Head for Health Data and Analytics, Dr Haidong Wang.
The report further noted that HIV and TB incidence rates are falling, adding that fewer people need treatment for neglected tropical diseases. Meanwhile, malaria has been resurging since 2015, and antimicrobial resistance remains a public health challenge.
It added that in 2023, childhood vaccination coverage, including the third-dose diphtheria-pertussis-tetanus-containing vaccine (DTP3), had not returned to pre-pandemic levels. It also emphasised that many countries are also falling behind in addressing foundational health risks such as malnutrition, air pollution, and unsafe living conditions.
Dr Samira Asma, WHO Assistant Director-General for Data, Analytics and Delivery for Impact, stated that, “This report shows that the world is failing its health checkup. But countries have shown that rapid progress is possible. Together, we can achieve a world where data is timelier and more accurate, programmes improve continuously, and premature deaths become rare. With speed, scale, and smart investments, every country can deliver measurable gains.”
The global health body has called for action, urging governments to act with urgency, commitment, and accountability to protect hard-won gains and respond to rising threats.
