The COVID-19 pandemic is a global health and economic crisis that requires a concerted global response.
So far, responses have mostly been at the country or city level, in part because pandemic preparedness planning and implementation have largely been the responsibility of individual governments.
But this has to change if the world is to emerge from this pandemic stronger, wrote Dean, Professor Teo Yik Ying and Professor David Heymann in an opinion editorial for The Straits Times.
They said that country lockdowns that are individually executed have limited effect.
“They can reduce transmission and death rates in individual cities or countries for a short period, until movements of people and goods resume, increasing infection risks again.
Thus they can at best achieve a temporary local containment, but will fail to slow the COVID-19 pandemic if one adopts a global outlook.”
The authors added that the opening up of economies and easing of lockdown measures — if not coordinated globally — will unleash second, third and subsequent waves of infections.
Global leaders thus need to coordinate the ending of national lockdowns.
Prof Teo and Prof Heymann outline five areas that need to be addressed to achieve a coordinated global exit. Read the full piece here:
Prof Heymann is professor at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and chairs the World Health Organisation Strategic and Technical Advisory Group for Infectious Hazards.