WHO includes Pakistan among 6 countries 'the world can learn from'

The World Health Organization has included Pakistan among six countries the world should learn from in fighting with future pandemics.

WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has said that coronavirus is not the last pandemic. "History teaches us that outbreaks and pandemics are a fact of life. But when the next pandemic comes, the world must be ready – more ready than it was this time," he said.

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He continued that while significant progress has been made in medicine, too many countries have neglected their public health systems. However, he added there are six countries the rest of the world can learn from.

While naming Pakistan, the WHO director said that the country has used the infrastructure it developed in its fight against polio to tackle the novel coronavirus.

He said those community health workers, who previously used to vaccinate children for polio, have been now redeployed for contact tracing and monitoring.

Ghebreyesus also included Thailand, Mongolia, Italy, Mauritius and Uruguay in the list of countries portraying their innovative and smart efforts in fighting pandemics.

"Having learned the lessons of previous pandemics, it's therefore vital that we learn the lessons this pandemic is teaching us," the director concluded.