After two years of the pandemic, early in May 2022, more than 504 million cases and around 6.2 million deaths have been confirmed worldwide, reflecting the catastrophic health consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. One of the hardest-hit was the Americas region, with at least 150 million cases and 2.6 million reported deaths. This is a disproportionate representation considering that these countries account for less than 10 per cent of the world’s population.
Studying contextual factors is critical to better understanding pandemic drivers, preventing further deaths and increasing vaccination rates. In addition, currently, there are no critical assessments that include experts’ opinions at the national and regional levels about the most pressing issues to be addressed after two years of the pandemic and that need to be considered to aim for a better response for upcoming health emergencies.
The Queen Elizabeth II Academy for Leadership in International Affairs, in collaboration with the Centre for Universal Health and the Latin America, US and the Americas Programme at Chatham House, will hold a roundtable to elicit views and recommendations from high-level experts on the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic preparedness and response during 2020–2021 in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia and Peru. Experts will advance recommendations for a regional agenda for future pandemic response and improvement of national and regional capacities.
Participation in the event is by invitation only and the discussion will be held under the Chatham House rule.
