SECTION A – Read the passage & answer the following questions (8 MARKS)

The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of
coronavirus disease 2019 caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).
The novel virus was first identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019; a lockdown in Wuhan and
other cities in Hubei province failed to contain the outbreak, and it spread to other parts of mainland
China and around the world. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared a Public Health
Emergency of International Concern on 30 January 2020, and a pandemic on 11 March 2020. Since
2021, variants of the virus have emerged and become dominant in many countries, with the Delta,
Alpha and Beta variants being the most virulent. As of 8 October 2021, more than 256 million cases
and 4.73 million deaths have been confirmed, making it one of the deadliest pandemics in history.

COVID-19 symptoms range from unnoticeable to life-threatening. Severe illness is more likely in
elderly patients and those with certain underlying medical conditions. The disease transmits when
people breathe in air contaminated by droplets and small airborne particles. The risk of breathing
these in is highest when people are in close proximity, but the virus can transmit over longer
distances, particularly indoors. Transmission can also occur, rarely, via contaminated surfaces or
fluids. People remain contagious for up to 20 days and can spread the virus even if they do not
develop symptoms.

Several vaccines have been approved and distributed in various countries, which have initiated mass
vaccination campaigns since December 2020. Other recommended preventive measures include
social distancing, wearing face masks in public, ventilation and air-filtering, covering one's mouth
when sneezing or coughing, hand washing, disinfecting surfaces, and quarantining people exposed
or symptomatic. Treatments focus on addressing symptoms, but work is underway to develop
medications that inhibit the virus. Authorities worldwide have responded by implementing travel
restrictions, lockdowns, business closures, workplace hazard controls, testing protocols, and systems
for tracing contacts of the infected.

The pandemic has resulted in severe global social and economic disruption, including the largest
global recession since the Great Depression of the 1930s. It has led to widespread supply shortages
exacerbated by panic buying, agricultural disruption, food shortages, and decreased emissions of
pollutants. Numerous educational institutions and public areas have been partially or fully closed,
and many events have been cancelled or postponed. Misinformation has circulated through social
media and mass media, and political tensions have been exacerbated. The pandemic has raised
issues of racial and geographic discrimination, health equity, and the balance between public health
imperatives and individual rights.