Updated 9 April 2020
WHO has launched a dedicated messaging services in Arabic, English, French, Hindi, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese with partners WhatsApp and Facebook to keep people safe from coronavirus. This easy-to-use messaging service has the potential to reach 2 billion people and enables WHO to get information directly into the hands of the people that need it.
From government leaders to health workers and family and friends, this messaging service provides the latest news and information on coronavirus including details on symptoms and how people can protect themselves and others. It also provides the latest situation reports and numbers in real-time to help government decision-makers protect the health of their populations.
The service can be accessed by a link that opens a conversation on WhatsApp. Users can simply type “hi”, “hola”, “नमस्ते”, “oi”, “salut”, “ciao” or “مرحبا” to activate the conversation, prompting a menu of options that can help answer their questions about COVID-19.
The WHO Health Alert was developed in collaboration with Praekelt.Org, using Turn machine learning technology.
Join WHO’s Health Alert on WhatsApp:
Arabic
Send “مرحبا” to +41 22 501 70 23 on WhatsApp
English
Send “hi” to +41 79 893 18 92 on WhatsApp
French
Send “salut” to +41 22 501 72 98 on WhatsApp
Hindi
Send “नमस्ते” to +41 22 501 73 41 on WhatsApp
Italian
Send “ciao” to +41 22 501 78 34 on WhatsApp
Spanish
Send “hola” to +41 22 501 76 90 on WhatsApp
Portuguese
Send “oi” to +41 22 501 77 35 on WhatsApp