Coronavirus Outbreak: Governments knew a pandemic was a threat – here's why they weren't better prepared
Most people think or at least hope their government is doing a good job in the face of COVID-19, according to the polls . But there can be no doubt that governments around the world were ill-prepared for this pandemic. Country after country has been locking their citizens in their homes to slow the spread of the virus for fear that their health systems get overwhelmed, as has happened in Italy. The lack of ventilators and protective equipment are a particular problem, despite the fact that scientists have called for years for governments to stockpile these life-saving machines and protective equipment . How is it possible that we were not ready? Not only had Bill Gates been banging on about this for a long time , but pandemics also featured strongly on regional and national risk registers produced by governments and bureaucrats, as well as international registers from non-governmental organisations. These administrative tools, highlight the most likely and impactful events that ...
