WHO chief calls out nations for 'dangerously short-sighted' approach while tackling COVID

The World Health Organisation (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Sunday said that it is time to learn the lessons from the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, warning that it is not going to be the last pandemic the world will ever see. Tedros, while marking the first International Day of Epidemic Preparedness on December 27, said that the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need to urgently improve the health system across the world and also prepare it for any future crisis. 

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The UN health body chief criticised the "dangerously short-sighted" approach of governments all over the world, who immediately start spending money on outbreaks, but do nothing to prepare for the next one. He urged the world to learn lessons from the ongoing pandemic and apply it in the future, saying that the COVID-19 crisis is certainly not going to be the last one the world will ever see. 

"For too long, the world has operated on a cycle of panic and neglect. We throw money at an outbreak, and when it's over, we forget about it and do nothing to prevent the next one. This is dangerously short-sighted, and frankly difficult to understand," WHO chief said in a video message on Sunday. 

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1st International Day of Epidemic Preparedness

The United Nations General Assembly has invited all Member States to mark December 27 as International Day of Epidemic Preparedness. The UN also urged all organisations of the global body, including regional and subregional, the private sector, the civil society to mark the day annually in an appropriate manner through education and awareness-raising activities, in order to highlight the importance of the prevention of, preparedness for and partnership against epidemics. 

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COVID-19 pandemic has gripped the world by its throat for the past year and has infected more than 80 million people across the globe, becoming one of the worst health crisis in over a century. The pandemic has killed at least 1.7 million people so far. Several governments across the world have started vaccination campaigns, prioritising health care professionals, and essential frontline workers. 

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