Are We Ready For The Next Pandemic?
I know what you're thinking.
We're barely finished with his pandemic why are you worried about the next one?
The answer is simple: If we aren't ready, the next one could be much, much worse.
Pandemics are a staple of human existence. They've plagued us for well over 2,000 years and with the exception of smallpox, we've been unable to eradicate any of them.
Coronavirus has killed just shy of 3 million people worldwide. That pales in comparison to the estimated 100 million killed during the Spanish Flu pandemic.
But this pandemic has been the deadliest since then, excluding the HIV/AIDS crisis, which is still ongoing.
We weren't prepared for Covid. With the exception of countries such as New Zealand, South Korea and Vietnam, a lot of countries have struggled to deal with the virus.
Despite the UK placing a pandemic at the top of its risk table, they've had the worst recession of any major economy and lost over 126,000 people.
The pandemic unit set up by the Obama administration was disbanded in March 2018 to devastating consequences. The result has been the deaths of over 500,000 people.
Covid has exposed the inequalities and structural flaws in our world. It's highlighted how fragile the world is and how easily it can be tipped upside down.
The next pandemic isn't a question of if, it's a question of when.
We will encounter another pandemic this century. If we learn the lessons from Covid, we can ensure it's not as damaging as this one.
Otherwise, we may end up making the same costly mistakes all over again.