Critique Paper on the Economic

Consequences of COVID-19 Outbreak

ECONOMIC CONSEQUENCES OF THE COVID-19 OUTBREAK:

THE NEED FOR EPIDEMIC PREPAREDNESS

An article written by Pak, Adegboye, Adekunle, Rahman, McBryde, and Eisen

titled “Economic Consequences of the COVID-19 Outbreak: the Need for Epidemic
Preparedness,” explored the adverse effects of the current pandemic on the world’s
economies. It effectively discussed how globalization, urbanization and technological
advancement contribute to the rapid spread of COVID-19 which is believed to have
started in Wuhan, China. Further, the authors likewise emphasized the significance of
international collective action to boost preventive and preparedness capabilities of low-
income and high-risk countries.

The article focused on the “how’s” and the “why’s” of the pandemic that hasn’t
only taken the lives of millions but has also severely affected the global economy. It
asked relevant questions - like “How did this happen?” and “Why did it get this bad?”, in
which the authors have generously provided answers to. According to them, the speed
of the outbreak that has already affected 213 countries (at the time of the writing) can
be linked to the rise of globalization and urbanization of countries. While it is
advantageous for countries to participate in international trade to boost their economies;
the same could be said to novel pathogens and viruses. Because everything in the
world is connected and travel has become commonplace, the spread of infectious
diseases such as COVID-19 has increased exponentially which resulted to grave
damages in service industries like tourism, hospitality and transportation. The authors
have also carefully elaborated on the “why’s” of this dilemma. They noted that the
absence of collective action towards preventive and preparedness measures has
allowed the virus to wreak havoc in the world.
 It can be said that the article was well-written and very informative as to the
“how’s” and “why’s” of this crisis. It didn’t only touch on the economic consequences of
the COVID-19 outbreak, it likewise discussed the leading factors that caused it like the
role of globalization and the lack of international collective action. Although the article
was short, the authors have thoroughly explained why the world needs an epidemic
preparedness plan to avoid crises like this to happen again in the near future.
 Reference

Pak, A., Adegboye, O. A., Adekunle, A. I., Rahman, K. M., McBryde, E. S., & Eisen, D.

P. (2020, May 29). Economic Consequences of the COVID-19 Outbreak: the

Need for Epidemic Preparedness. Frontiers. Retrieved from

https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2020.00241