Only global cooperation will stem the spread of coronavirus – Telegraph.co.uk

But China has been less rigorous about following the golden rule of fighting pandemics transparency. In the early days of the outbreak, internet users in the country appeared unable to find advice on what precautions they should take, and analysts in Hong Kong claimed links to foreign articles including estimates and the location of new cases were blocked. Two citizen journalists who posted videos about the outbreak went missing.

Other countries including Italy, focus of the largest outbreak in Europe, and South Korea, with the largest number of cases outside China, have also moved to lock down affected cities and restrict the movement of the population.

But in Iran, while schools, universities and some religious seminaries have been shut in response to an outbreak in Qom, south of Tehran, senior clerics rejected a proposal to close its holy shrine, which draws visitors from across the world, claiming that linking the virus with the city was part of a US plot to undermine the religious institution.

Whether efforts to contain COVID-19 prove sufficient is looking increasingly precarious. They may only have bought a breathing space as the outbreak evolves into a global pandemic.

If that is what we face, it will be a major challenge for our world. An effective response will require the involvement of all peoples, the contribution of all sciences, the engagement of all employers and employees, and the collective capacities of businesses.

As David Nabarro, WHO special envoy, says, ensuring populations have access to accurate information they can rely on is paramount. With trust in politicians in short supply, it is to senior scientists and clinicians who can speak with authority that we must turn.

As the focus shifts from containment keeping them from infecting us to mitigation keeping us from infecting each other (for example, by cancelling mass events) transparency, openness and collaboration will be essential.

Every citizen may be at risk and every citizen involved in the response. Doing it well, as a truly global community, can only happen if there is full and generous collaboration among all local and national governments, in ways that explicitly avoid attempts to gain political advantage.

We have learned that we do best if we are willing to share what we know (and do not know), and do all we can to ensure that no person, no community and no nation is left behind.

Professor the Lord Darzi of Denham is a surgeon and director of the Institute of Global Health Innovation at Imperial College London. He was a Labour health minister from 2007-9.

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Only global cooperation will stem the spread of coronavirus - Telegraph.co.uk