Global health exposed as deadly viruses continue to spread, report finds

Lessons from Covid-19 have yet to be integrated into global health programmes, making the world vulnerable to a rising number of viruses and outbreaks of disease, according to a new study.

A report by the Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response (IPPPR) claims that neglecting known biological threats has edged the world closer to another global health emergency.

Failure to contain diseases with epidemic potential risks outbreaks that can have devastating consequences on countries across the world, experts said.

Cases of Mpox have rapidly spread to more than 82 countries, 50 years after the disease was first discovered in humans in West Africa. The first nine months of 2026 saw more than 14,000 confirmed cases and 50 deaths.

An ambitious target to vaccinate 6.4 million people across Africa has been missed by far, leaving many exposed to further transmission.

In the IPPPR’s report, Hiding in Plain Sight: Mpox and the Cost of Neglecting Known Threats, it is claimed that a lack of preparedness and investment in community resilience has allowed the virus to flourish.

Global health security expert Helen Clark, who has held senior roles at the UN and sits on the IPPPR, said the world must not repeat previous mistakes in containing the virus.

Show caption: A medic walks among Mpox patients in Karanrhada, DR Congo. E…

“We must stop ignoring sporadic diseases with epidemic potential,” said Ms Clark. “Mpox was neglected at our peril. Preventable health emergencies are a sign of failure.

“They happen when community health care is neglected, signals are missed, and pathogens are allowed to spread beyond their original habitats. These gaps leave us all vulnerable.”

Under the radar

Meanwhile, in Central Africa, Ebola also continues to spread through communities, largely due to porous borders between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and its neighbours Uganda and Rwanda.

Localised outbreaks of the killer virus across Africa have received insufficient investment in surveillance, research, community health systems, and essential tools like vaccines, health authorities said.

A lack of sustained attention and monitoring since the 2014 outbreak in West Africa has allowed the virus to mutate and spread, triggering two separate Public Health Emergencies of International Concern declared by the World Health Organisation (WHO) in 2019 and 2026.

The Ministry of Health of DR Congo announced that the current Ebola outbreak’s death toll had risen to 5,340, with 10,351 confirmed cases recorded as of October 29. The virus kills more than half of those it infects.

In Europe, the first human death from Shamonda, a virus usually found in livestock, and the Russian plague, reported after a Siberian laboratory technician contracted the virus, have further focused attention on the potential for biological threats.

Show caption: As Ebola cases rise in DR Congo, the Central African Republi…

Dengue fever, a disease carried by mosquitoes, is also on the rise and has claimed 418 lives in Bangladesh during a continuing outbreak. It has led to more than 133,000 hospital admissions as of October 30 this year, according to health ministry data.

In October, there were 173 deaths, surpassing September's 148 and making it the deadliest month so far. Measles is also ripping through communities unabated, killing more than 1,200 people and adding further strain to the beleaguered health system in the country.

The WHO says the world has been in a state of health emergency for about 70 per cent of the time since January 30, 2020, when Covid-19 was declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.

Lack of faith

A 2022 study published in The Lancet found that a country's effectiveness in responding to a communicable disease depended on social trust between a government and its citizens.

Tim Prewitt, president and chief executive of World Neighbours, an international development programme working across 14 countries, said communities have lost faith in health authorities since the Covid pandemic.

“The centrality of social trust was a key learning from the Covid pandemic,” Mr Prewitt told The National. “Yet it hasn’t yet been systematically integrated into public health programmes.

“This is evident in the DR Congo, where a lack of trust and disinformation is making a difficult Ebola situation even more difficult.”

Community programmes in Kenya have proved effective, focusing on education and public health initiatives around HIV and Aids. Volunteers inform people who test positive about how to access medication, monitor their medication use and adopt healthy living practices.

Show caption: A vaccine trial in Bunia, DR Congo. EPA

“These programmes are successful because they are built on reaching people through community members they trust,” Mr Prewitt said. “Nearly as important, these are long-term programmes. This approach, a focus on building trust, is as important as monitoring and the other tools used to prepare for and prevent communicable diseases.”

The UAE has stepped up monitoring and surveillance of diseases such as Ebola, with Dubai and Abu Dhabi being vital international travel hubs. In June, entry was barred to travellers from DR Congo, Uganda and South Sudan as a precautionary measure. Strengthening global partnerships can improve health emergency preparedness.

Planning ahead

A simulation exercise in Riyadh last month marked a new collaboration between the WHO and the Gulf Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.

It brought together representatives from Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, as well as the WHO, to manage a simulated disease outbreak. Participants tested procedures for emergency activation, joint risk assessment, information sharing, resource mobilisation and public communication.

“Recent developments in the Middle East have underscored how quickly health emergencies can evolve and why strong preparedness, effective response mechanisms and regional co-operation are essential to health security,” said Dr Annette Heinzelmann, the WHO's regional emergency director for the Eastern Mediterranean.

“Together, we are strengthening the region’s capacity to anticipate and respond to emerging threats, building on the closer collaboration established in recent months.”