<\/b>Expertos del Banco Mundial y la Organizaci\u00f3n Mundial de la Salud (OMS<\/b>) advirtieron sobre pandemias que podr\u00edan matar a decenas de millones de personas y causar estragos en la econom\u00eda global, por lo que instaron a que los gobiernos est\u00e9n preparados para mitigar los riesgos. \u201cUn pat\u00f3geno de r\u00e1pido movimiento tiene el potencial de matar a decenas de millones de personas, perturbar las econom\u00edas y desestabilizar la seguridad nacional\u201d, dijeron los expertos, asegurando que la posibilidad de una amenaza de este tipo es real.<\/p>\n
LONDON (Reuters) – The world is facing a mounting threat of disease pandemics that could kill millions and wreak havoc on the global economy, a international expert panel has warned, and governments should work to prepare for and mitigate that risk.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe threat of a pandemic spreading around the globe is a real one,\u201d the group said in a report released on Wednesday. \u201cA quick-moving pathogen has the potential to kill tens of millions of people, disrupt economies and destabilize national security.\u201d<\/p>\n
While some governments and international agencies have made efforts to be vigilant and prepare for major disease outbreaks since the devastating 2014-2016 Ebola outbreak in West Africa, those efforts are \u201cgrossly insufficient\u201d, the report said.<\/p>\n
Gro Harlem Brundtland, a former WHO head who co-chaired the board, added that current approaches to disease and health emergencies are \u201ccharacterized by a cycle of panic and neglect.\u201d<\/p>\n
The report cited the 1918 \u201cSpanish flu\u201d pandemic, which killed an estimated 50 million people. With vast numbers of people crossing the world on planes every day, an equivalent air-borne outbreak now could spread globally in less than 36 hours and kill an estimated 50 million to 80 million people, wiping out nearly 5% of the global economy, it said.<\/p>\n
In the case of a pandemic, many national health systems – particularly in poor countries – would collapse.<\/p>\n
\u201cPoverty and fragility exacerbate outbreaks of infectious disease and help create the conditions for pandemics to take hold,\u201d said Axel van Trotsenburg, acting chief executive of the World Bank and a member of the panel.<\/p>\n
Calling on governments to \u201cheed the lessons these outbreaks are teaching us\u201d and to \u201cfix the roof before the rain comes\u201d, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the WHO, said they should invest in strengthening health systems, boost funds for research into new technologies, improve coordination and rapid communication systems, and monitor progress continually.<\/p>\n
The WHO also warned earlier this year that another pandemic of flu – which is caused by airborne viruses – is inevitable, and said the world should prepare for it.<\/p>\n