Five years after the COVID-19 pandemic began, the World Health Organization (WHO) warns that the world is not yet prepared for the next global health crisis. While acknowledging progress made in pandemic preparedness, the WHO emphasizes the continued need for strengthening defenses and addressing global inequalities in access to resources.
GENEVA, Switzerland — An awkward question remains five years after Covid-19 began its deadly rampage: Is the world ready to handle the next pandemic?The World Health Organization, which was at the heart of the pandemic response, has been galvanizing efforts to determine where the next threat might come from and to ensure the planet is ready to face it.But while the UN health agency considers the world more prepared than it was when Covid hit, it warns we are not nearly ready enough.
Five years since Covid-19 started upending the world, the virus is still infecting and killing people across the globe — though at far lower levels than during the height of the pandemic. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said recently: 'Yes and no.'If the next pandemic arrived today, the world would still face some of the same weaknesses and vulnerabilities,' he warned.'But the world has also learned many of the painful lessons the pandemic taught us, and has taken significant steps to strengthen its defenses.'Maria Van Kerkhove, the WHO's epidemic and pandemic preparedness and prevention director, said it was a matter of when, not if, we will face another pandemic.'There's a lot that has improved because of the 2009 (H1N1) flu pandemic but also because of Covid. But I think the world is not ready for another infectious disease massive outbreak or pandemic.'The Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response, created by the WHO, was blunt in its assessment.'In 2025, the world is not ready to tackle another pandemic threat,' it said, citing continued inequality in access to funding and pandemic-fighting tools like vaccine
Pandemic WHO Preparedness Health Crisis Global Inequalities
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