By TIAMIYU PRUDENCE AROBANI

Dr Ibrahim Abubakar, a professor of infectious diseases at the University College London, says there will be another pandemic and it will not be 100 years from now.

Abubakar said this at a meeting of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) in New York.

He said it was not a question of if, but when, adding that the answer was sooner than anyone wants.

He said this was because the global healthcare system remained drastically isolated.

He noted that a pandemic could not be stopped by one country alone, adding that effective partnerships could stop the next pandemic

“Infectious diseases will not respect borders,” Abubakar warned.

He said it was therefore expedient that health systems to ensure equity, dignity and universal access must also be agile to implement policies across borders.

The infectious diseases expert noted that stopping pandemics and promoting broader global development, required robust partnerships and consistent investment in multilateral systems as a practice, not just an ideal.

Abubakar noted Member States recently adopted a pandemic prevention treaty which endeavours to limit the likelihood of future pandemics.

Lok Bahadur Thapa, Vice President of ECOSOC said that if the council was to meet the ambitions of the 2030 Agenda, it must re-imagine cooperation.

Thapa said cooperation must not be seen as a transactional action but a dynamic, inclusive and future-ready partnership.

Meanwhile, the High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) on Sustainable Development is convening at UN Headquarters in New York to discuss progress.

Delegates will also discuss otherwise towards the globally agreed 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The first 16 SDGs deal with specific aspects of development, such as poverty, gender equality and climate change, however, the 17th puts forward a path to achieve the others.

This path lies in embracing global partnerships between state governments, civil society organisations, communities and the private sector.

SDGs currently has an annual financing gap, which exceeds four trillion dollars, the partnerships of today are not sufficient to realise the goals for tomorrow. (NAN)