The world is still at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, and it will take some time to work out how to deal with it, an expert has told MPs.
David Nabarro, who is one of the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) special envoys on Covid-19, told the Foreign Affairs Committee the present situation is horrible and grotesque. He said the outbreak is worse than any science fiction movie, and appears to be getting nastier as cases reemerge in Europe.
Dr Nabarro told MPs: “None of us find the present situation, anything other than horrible grotesque, really embarrassing.
“It’s a terrible situation, a health issue has got so out of control it’s knocking the world into, not just a recession, but a huge economic contraction which would probably double the number of poor people, double the number of malnourished, lead to hundreds of millions of small businesses going bankrupt.”
He added there was also a risk of the pandemic ruining educational opportunities for a lot of children around the world. Dr Nabarro said: It’s awful. And we really, really are, all of us, deeply saddened and troubled by it.
Read More: World still at beginning of Covid-19 pandemic, expert tells MPs
