What it will take to overcome the pandemic May 15,2021 - Last updated at May 15,2021 By Palitha Abeykoon, Maha El Rabbat and David Nabarro GENEVA — As special envoys on COVID-19 for the director-general of the World Health Organisation, we have witnessed firsthand the intensity of the suffering caused by the pandemic, especially in poorer communities. This profound tragedy has been evolving before our eyes and still is nowhere near its end. In our experience, the first priority in responding to an infectious disease is to save lives and protect the health and well-being of current and future generations. At the same time, we are increasingly concerned by the tremendous social and economic damage that COVID-19 has wrought. With people everywhere struggling to preserve their livelihoods under the constant threat of the coronavirus, it has become clear that this pandemic is more than a health emergency. It has become a global whole-of-society crisis.