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The coronavirus pandemic is far from over, Bill Gates has warned, saying there could still be a variant which is "even more transmissive and even more fatal".

"We haven't even seen the worst of it," he said in an interview, Sky News reports.

While not wanting to be a "voice of doom and gloom", the risk of a more virulent variant emerging is "way above 5%", the Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist told the Financial Times.

"We're still at risk of this pandemic generating a variant that would be even more transmissive and even more fatal," he said, adding that longer-lasting vaccines which block infection are urgently required.

Gates, one of the world's wealthiest people, has written a book called How to Prevent the Next Pandemic.

He is urging the creation of a team of international experts - ranging from epidemiologists to computer modellers - to identify threats and improve international coordination.

He is also calling for a global epidemic response team, managed by the World Health Organisation, and says extra investment is vital.

"It seems wild to me that we could fail to look at this tragedy and not, on behalf of the citizens of the world, make these investments," he said.