Did Europe React Too Slowly? - Jack Smith

During my time at Kreab, I had the opportunity to follow many events including Brexit, the European Union’s budget proposal, and, of course, the Coronavirus outbreak. Once the Coronavirus outbreak started ramping up and spreading throughout Asia, I was asked by Nicolas, an associate director at Kreab, to follow the Coronavirus for one of his clients. After a few weeks of following the outbreak closely, I believed that the outbreak would slow down and that Europe would be rather safe during the outbreak. Lord was I wrong.

I was tasked with following the European Commission’s midday press briefing daily. The European Commission commented and answered questions concerning the outbreak nearly daily as it was rampaging through Asia. The death rate was low, it was not disrupting economic affairs just yet, and the European Commission dismissed the outbreak as a serious threat. The EC’s representatives claimed many things along the lines of “we will be prepared,” “we are currently assisting the outbreak containment efforts in Asia,” and “our health systems are more advanced and are prepared for such an outbreak.” They were wrong.

Once the outbreak reached Italy, it became apparent that Europe was not ready for the outbreak. The virus spread so quickly that the first responders, hospitals, or personal protection equipment supplies could not keep up, even with the help of the European Union. The virus spread fast across Europe, the United States, and throughout the entire world.

The European Union did react too slow. However, it is not possible for the EU representatives to predict that the outbreak would be this serious. There is not an effective way to prevent an outbreak like this without crashing economies around the world. It would be foolish to invest heaps of money and manpower into a problem that may go away on its own. With the precedence that Sars set in the early 2000s, it is understandable why the EU waited so long to react.

Humans have a terrible tendency of not focusing on an issue unless it is currently affecting them. The coronavirus outbreak should be a wakeup call to citizens around the world that issues can spring up quickly and unless the world reacts fast, all lives on earth can be affected.