Pakistan’s efforts to contain spread of COVID-19 hailed

Islamabad : The experts hailing from eight countries on Thursday speaking at a conference titled ‘Measures Being Taken by Countries around the Globe against COVID-19’, appreciated the efforts of Pakistan for containing the spread of COVID-19, says a press release.

The online international conference was organised by the Centre for Global & Strategic Studies (CGSS), Islamabad to discuss the measures being taken by countries around the Globe against COVID-19. The session was aimed at discussing the effective steps taken by various countries all around the globe to combat COVID-19. The conference was attended by experts from China, Azerbaijan, Russia, Turkey, Thailand, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan.

Lieutenant Colonel Khalid Taimur Akram (r), Executive Director CGSS moderated the event.

Major General (r) Syed Khalid Amir Jaffery welcomed the participants and briefed them about the aim of the online conference and explained the current global COVID-19 situation.

Brigadier (r) Mansoor Saeed, Senior Member Advisory Board CGSS briefly explained about the preventive measures taken by the Pakistan government.

Professor Xu Wenhong, Deputy Secretary-General of the Belt & Road Centre, CASS and Associate Professor China Academy of Social Sciences, Beijing, China highlighted the measures taken by China which proved to be effective in not only limiting the spread but also overcoming the coronavirus.

Further, he mentioned that future policies, plans, and programs initiated by countries would be aligned with the post-COVID-19 global scenario.

Ms. Belgin Coskum, Specialist Infectious Diseases & Clinical Microbiology, Ankara City Hospital, Turkey stressed upon the importance of social distancing and highlighted Turkey’s efforts in ensuring its practice.

Former Chief of Navy of Sri Lanka (from Colombo) Admiral JSK Colombage appreciated the active role played by the health care sector of Pakistan. He highlighted a few of the significant steps taken by the Sri Lankan government which included the forming of an Action Committee, the timely establishment of quarantine centres, and imposing of curfew to limit the mobility of people.

Aamir Ghauri, Editor, ‘The News’ explained the significant role played by the Pakistani media in raising awareness amongst the general public regarding the novel coronavirus. He further explained the importance of media in forming a bridge between the government and the general public to collectively fight the virus.

Professor Gusev Leonid, Moscow State Institute of International Relations, Moscow, Russia briefed the panelists regarding the financial support provided to the small and medium-sized enterprises.

Moreover, the coronavirus patients are required to wear tracking bands in Russia.

He also shared that the Russian government had exempted rents for the next six months to facilitate people with financial difficulties.

General Sursait Thanadtang (r), Director Thai-Chinese Strategic Research Center, Bangkok, Thailand explained the measures taken by the Thailand government to facilitate the most vulnerable sections of the society.

Babak Huseynli, Head of Great Azerbaijan Public Union Institute, Baku, Azerbaijan by presenting the figures of the coronavirus cases, briefed about the controlled situation of coronavirus in Azerbaijan.

Dr. Shahzad Yaqoob, Central Hospital Hafr Al-Batin, Ministry of Health, Saudi Arabia informed the panellists about the relief packages being offered by the Saudi government. To limit the spread of coronavirus in Saudi Arabia, all the educational, official, and other activities have been shifted to digital platforms, he added.

Dr. Mehmood-ul-Hassan Khan, Member Board of Experts CGSS & Regional Geopolitical Analyst appreciated the humanitarian efforts by China.

A total of 25 experts attended the event and a comprehensive interactive session was also carried out.