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Billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates explained in a blog post on Thursday what the world needs to do to stop the coronavirus pandemic and reopen the economy.
He said the world must advance its treatments, vaccines, testing, and contact tracing, as well as examine its policies for opening up global economies.
Gates compared the virus pandemic to a war.
“During World War II, an amazing amount of innovation, including radar, reliable torpedoes, and code-breaking, helped end the war faster,” Gates said.
“This will be the same with the pandemic.”
Below are the five areas Gates outlined as needing attention:
- Treatment: Gates acknowledged that many treatments may fail. However, he said he is optimistic that some would be successful in reducing the coronavirus burden.
- Vaccines: “Short of a miracle treatment,” the only way for people to return to some sense of normal is through developing a vaccine, he noted.
- Testing: Gates said the United States has to prioritise and speed up coronavirus testing to have results in one day.
- Contact tracing: He said that people who have been in close contact with someone who tested positive for the virus should be prioritised for testing and self-isolate.
- Opening up: He also believes that most developed countries would enter the second phase of the pandemic in the coming two months. That’s where the world is semi-normal, yet people still practice social distancing.
Gates has been vocal on the pandemic as he has described its spread as a “nightmare scenario.”
