Return to normal Can SL use UK, Singaporean models as templates?

• President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, in a meeting earlier this week, said the government could no longer run the economy by keeping the country closed
• Tourism is a key element warranting attention here

The post –Covid -19 world is poised to be different to what it was before the pandemic. Fresh economic challenges and alteration of social fabric are all too visible now the world over. Coinages of new phrases are constantly done to be added to the lexicon to describe   the emerging scenarios with the pandemic continuing to take its toll on human life. 

Vaccination of the global population to achieve herd immunity is considered the only option to curb the spread of the highly contagious viral disease for resumption of normal life. It is now apparent that the world has been gripped by a sense of urgency for the containment of the disease spread to return to normal. The need is much felt since the economies cannot be sustained with restrictive measures in place for an indefinite period. Prolonged   lockdowns or restrictions on public movements have triggered unforeseen challenges in terms of people being thrown out of jobs, rising cost of living, closure of businesses etc. 

Driven by this sense of urgency, the attempt for new ways and means for resumption of normal life was made by Singapore first.  Recently, Singapore became the first country to lay down a new vision for life to return to normal. According to Singapore’s Covid-19 task force, it will abolish lockdowns and mass contact tracing. Singapore will entertain quarantine free travel and large gatherings. Daily Covid- 19 cases will not be counted.  In fact, Covid-19 will be considered as yet another viral disease like Dengue.  The decision has been taken since it is impossible to wait for the zero transmission of cases to resume routine in life.

The health sector is pressing for more and more restrictive measures to arrest the spread of the disease whereas the economic policy makers and practitioners insist on reopening the country for normal life and tourism as quickly as possible

Singapore’s Trade Minister Gan Kim Yong, Finance Minister Lawrence Wong and Health Minister Ong Ye Kung, in an op-ed in the Straits Times said, “Bad news is that Covid-19 may never go away.  The good news is that it is possible to live normally with it in our midst,” 

Likewise, the United Kingdom is planning to move away from legal restrictions with no bar on social contacts. It is also heading for the removal of one –metre social distancing rule except at ports of entry and medical settings. 
Legal requirements for face coverings will broadly be done away with   and night clubs permitted to reopen. In the hospitality industry over there, businesses will no longer be required to provide table service only. The bar on the limits on numbers at weddings and funerals will also be removed. 

The pertinent question that now arises in the minds of people is whether these moves by the UK and Singapore will serve as templates for other countries to follow in the midst of the pandemic.  It is, of course, possible.  In these two countries, it has been realistic due to successful mass vaccine rollouts leading to reductions in infections, hospitalizations and deaths.  

As such, they are actually better placed at this juncture to make radical decisions and departures. The countries that have completed successful vaccination of at least 60 percent their populations can opt for such measures.  But, other countries keep continuing with tight control measures on people’s movements. 

Like most other countries, Sri Lanka is also a country where the pandemic – related restrictive measures are unaffordable in economic perspective.  Nevertheless, the government here is hard pressed by demands from two different extreme ends. The health sector is pressing for more and more restrictive measures to arrest the spread of the disease whereas the economic policy makers and practitioners insist on reopening the country for normal life and tourism as quickly as possible.  The demands by the two segments are well-intentioned, though. 

However, in reality, Sri Lanka has reached a point whereas economic activities can no longer be restricted. The only option is to strike a compromise between the two demands and reopen the country to return to normal. Tourism is a key element warranting attention here. Already, the pandemic-induced downfall of the US 4.5 billion tourism industry is one of the main causes of the present foreign exchange crisis confronting the country at the moment. 

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, in a meeting earlier this week, said the government could no longer run the economy by keeping the country closed. He expressed optimism that the country could be reopened fully by September this year after vaccination of people according to a time-bound plan. 

Yes, the country can think of normalcy only after more than 60 percent of people are immunized against the virus, particularly in a context of more lethal variants of the disease such as Delta emerging at the moment.

The successful conclusion of the vaccine drive sometimes hangs in the balance because of disruptions to the supply network.  For example, Sri Lanka placed orders for 14 million doses of Sputnik V vaccine from Russia.

However, the Russian manufacturer is at a loss in meeting the demand from Sri Lanka due to a spike of Covid- 19 cases in that country. It happened with the procurement of AstraZeneca vaccines from India early this year.  The phenomena increase of cases in Indian prompted the supplier- Serum Institute of India- to cater to the local requirement. Sri Lanka’s original vaccine drive went awry with this situation compelling it to look to other global vaccine suppliers.