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The coronavirus pandemic has exacted a devastating human toll on the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, with over 300,000 confirmed cases and 11,000 deaths to date. It has also pushed the region’s public healthcare systems to their limits, though countries differ greatly in their capacities to test, trace, quarantine, and treat affected individuals. MENA governments also vary in their access to medical supplies and expertise, as well as in their willingness to be transparent about the nature and extent of their national crises.
Across the MENA region, the individuals running public healthcare systems have risen to the challenge, attempting to manage the pandemic’s fallout as best they can. However, while some healthcare systems have benefitted from adequate governmental support and citizen responses, others have had to deal with bureaucratic barriers, shortages of supplies and expertise, and uncooperative populations. The struggles of MENA healthcare providers are reflective of the wider social, economic, political, and institutional challenges facing the MENA region and a possible indication of things to come.
The Brookings Doha Center is pleased to invite you to a webinar discussion on the public health challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic in the MENA region. The discussion will address the following questions: How are MENA countries dealing with the pandemic from a public health perspective? What measures are they taking to contain the pandemic and how do these compare with those of other countries around the world? Where and why have governments diverged in their responses? And what policies should MENA governments prioritize in the months ahead?
IMPORTANT: Kindly note that there is a maximum capacity to join this Webinar. The discussion will include a “Question and Answer” session. All attendees will have the chance to submit questions via the Q&A option in the Zoom webinar and these can be submitted anonymously during the time allocated for Q&A.
ORGANIZER: Brookings Institute