Mr. Chairman, members of the committee, thank you for inviting me to testify today on the response of the international community, including the Canadian government, to the humanitarian needs that have been created and exacerbated by the pandemic.
Plagues put a mirror to the societies they afflict. The coronavirus pandemic has exposed the failures of governments that do not invest in the health of their own constituents, or address the collective risks that arise when vulnerable groups globally lack adequate health and economic protections.
The Council on Foreign Relations is an independent, non-partisan institution dedicated to advancing understanding of foreign policy choices facing the United States and other countries. We recently released a report of an independent task force on preparing for the next pandemic, “Improving Pandemic Preparedness: Lessons From COVID-19”.