In its message on the International Day of Epidemic Preparedness, which falls tomorrow (27), the United Nations (UN) stated that the Covid-19 pandemic is more than a health crisis; and that it is an economic, humanitarian, security, and human rights crisis that has highlighted severe fragilities and inequalities within and among nations.

Recovering from the Covid-19 pandemic is an ongoing process that involves learning from the harsh lessons the pandemic taught us. One of the most important of these lessons is how the lack of preparedness could not only leave countries vulnerable to such epidemics, but also make crisis management and recovery more difficult.

When the Covid-19 pandemic, the most recent health disaster, hit the world, many countries lacked the ability to deal with it, mainly due to this lack of preparedness. This was observed in many spheres – the health sectors of most countries had not dealt with such a disease in decades and were therefore ill-equipped to counter it right away; policymakers and governments had not anticipated such an emergency, which resulted in countries lacking policies and regulations to immediately respond to the disease as a public emergency; and the people were unaware and unready to face such a contagious disease, as they had not experienced a similar situation in the past few decades. Thus, many countries and communities were left vulnerable to Covid-19, exacerbating the impacts of the disease. 

Sri Lanka’s situation is no different. While it is commendable that lockdowns and strict Covid-19 safety regulations were declared as soon as the Government grasped the gravity of the situation, it took months for the authorities and the public parties to comprehend the full extent of the damage the disease could cause and devise an effective Covid-19 response and management system to suit the country’s needs. Therefore, in a context where Covid-19 is still a considerable health threat and the likelihood of new health threats, such as monkeypox, intensifying is high, regardless of how the global health situation may evolve in the foreseeable future, Sri Lanka should pay attention to preparing itself for health emergencies.

In Sri Lanka’s case, ensuring preparedness in the health sector through improving its capacity is a difficult task, given the state of the economy. Perhaps the best form of preparedness that Sri Lanka could establish is raising public awareness on shaping health habits and lifestyles in a way that least exposes them to health threats. In fact, such preparedness would be easier to achieve now, in comparison to the pre-Covid-19 era, as the people are now more aware of the extent to which their lifestyles and habits can affect their health. 

In addition, establishing a policy environment aimed at lessening health threats through introducing good health practices is a viable option for Sri Lanka. However, this is the duty of policymakers and lawmakers, and therefore, their knowledge should first be improved. Their attitudes too need to change in order to look at effective long-term health preparedness instead of unplanned, case-by-case basis responses.

The country should thus realise the learning opportunities that have arisen from the Covid-19 pandemic, as pointed out by health experts, and apply these lessons to avoid a recurrence of a similar health crisis. After going through what could be called the worst pandemic in our lifetime, the lack of preparedness is no longer justifiable.