WB: Nations ill-prepared for pandemics
Print Edition
MOST of the world is failing to invest enough money to prevent the potential global spread of disease that could kill millions and cripple economies, the World Bank has said.
Faced with a pandemic, an unprepared planet could lose billions to trillions of dollars, a significant chunk of the global gross domestic product, it said in a report yesterday.
Yet containing pandemics — diseases that spread globally compared with epidemics that are localized — would cost about US$1 per person per year in investment, the bank said.
“Given the scale of risk to human lives and livelihoods, the investment case for financing preparedness is compelling,” said Peter Sands, chairman of the bank’s Working Group on Financing Preparedness which wrote the report.
“We must make it happen.”
Recent pandemics include the Zika virus, an infectious disease linked to severe birth defects in babies, and the H1N1 virus, also known as swine flu, the WB said.
The devastating effects of a pandemic were illustrated as well during the Ebola outbreak that swept West Africa and killed more than 11,000 people between 2013 and 2016.
To determine that most of the world falls short in terms of pandemic preparedness the WB assessed countries on a stress test of measures in place.
Of 37 countries in Africa, Europe, Asia and North America put through the test, most were graded with a red or yellow light, meaning progress remains to be made, the Washington-based bank said.
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