Although scientists warn that future pandemics may occur sooner than we think and that these may be much more catastrophic than COVID-19, the world is not prepared to tackle them. What is more, no progress has been made in various areas since the ongoing pandemic began.
The latest 2021 Global Health Security Index prepared by the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, the Bloomberg School of Public Health, and the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) reveals that most countries are not ready to handle new pandemics. According to the index, 195 countries scored on average just 38.9 points out of 100 in terms of their readiness to tackle future pandemics which means that the situation has not improved since 2019 when COVID-19 began. The best position was occupied by the US which scored 75.9 points and the worst by Somalia which scored just 16.
In terms of regions, North America enjoys the best situation while sub-Saharan Africa the worst, as shown in the graph below.
Fig.1. Preparedness for globally catastrophic biological events
Source: Global Health Security (GHS) Index 2021
“COVID-19 offers a devastating illustration of how poor pandemic preparedness and response can impact health and security at every level – local, national and global. The stakes are high and world leaders need to act. Biological risks are growing in frequency and all countries need more investment in durable capabilities to address these risks,” said NTI Co-Chair and CEO, Ernest J. Moniz.
Main vulnerabilities
The report found that despite the ongoing pandemic, countries have not improved their preparedness for future outbreaks. The majority of states (155 out of 195), including high-income countries, have not allocated additional funds within the last three years to strengthen their capacity to tackle epidemic threats and 70% of states have not improved the efficiency of their health care systems to prepare them to handle future pandemics (clinics, hospitals, health care centers, human resources). The index also revealed that the ongoing pandemic has decreased the trust that people have in governments which is a key factor in tackling any such event with governments in 161 states recording low or moderate levels of public confidence. The majority of countries are not prepared to include vulnerable populations in their emergency response plans should there be another pandemic with only 33 states included such communities in their plans. Last but not least, the report found that countries are totally unprepared to prevent any global catastrophic biological event which would be on a larger scale than COVID-19. Furthermore, 126 states have not yet published their national public health emergency response plans for diseases that have an epidemic or pandemic potential.
Recommendations
Based on those alarming findings, the authors of the index offer recommendations that aim to address a future potential global health crisis. They suggest that countries should allocate health security funds in national budgets in case of another pandemic and develop national emergency plans with the private sector being engaged in the process as a partner of governments. International organizations should identify those states that have the lowest potential to tackle future pandemics and offer support and the aid sector must also prepare for future pandemics by establishing financing mechanisms that enable resources to be easily accessed when necessary.
