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Global Health Economics and
Sustainability
COVID-19 changed our world

1. Introduction particularly impacted nations in Africa, where people are
very vulnerable to infectious diseases (Lone & Ahmad,
The global balance was disrupted when severe acute 2020; Shastri et al., 2020).
respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2)
emerged in Wuhan, China, in December 2019 and resulted COVID-19 had caused 473,797 deaths globally as of June
in the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic 24, 2020, from 9,129,146 confirmed cases. By November
(Lai et al., 2020). The virus spread quickly, prompting 25, 2022, the WHO reported 636,440,663 confirmed cases
the World Health Organization (WHO) to declare it and 6,606,624 deaths worldwide (Figure 2). The highest
a public health emergency of international concern number of cases were registered in Europe (264,065,011),
on January 30, 2020 (Chan et al., 2020; Li et al., 2020). followed by the Americas (181,462,467), the Western
Coronaviruses were already known but the SARS-CoV-2 Pacific (97,712,745), Southeast Asia (60,621,308), the
marked the third major outbreak of respiratory illnesses eastern Mediterranean (23,187,814), and Africa (9,390,554)
caused by these viruses (Zhong et al., 2003). SARS-CoV-2 (WHO, 2023). The first confirmed COVID-19 case in India
is considered zoonotic, which means it can spread from was reported in Kerala on January 30, 2020, making India
animals to humans. It has been linked to varied animals the first in Asia and the fourth globally to record confirmed
and birds including camels, pigs, turkeys, mice, dogs, and cases (Chehal et al., 2021). The situation escalated rapidly,
bats (Geller et al., 2012; Anthony et al., 2017). This virus with cases of infection rising from 32 on March 2, 2020,
spreads from animals to humans through airborne particles to a peak of 2,738,957 on May 3, 2021. Significant surges
and disperses from person to person primarily through were also observed on specific dates with 148,249 cases
droplets, infected hands, or contaminated surfaces such on March 15, 2021, and 2,115,110 cases on January 17,
as skin contact with an incubation period of 2 – 14 days 2022, followed by a critical decline. India recorded 456,183
(Zhai et al., 2020) (Figure 1). The pandemic substantively confirmed cases during the early months of the pandemic
affected even the most developed countries and posed a and confirmed 14,476 deaths, primarily in Maharashtra
serious threat to low- and middle-income countries. It and Delhi (Aneja & Ahuja, 2021).

Figure 1. Infographic of COVID-19 infection. Image created by the authors
Abbreviation: SARS-CoV-2: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2.

Volume 3 Issue 1 (2025) 39 https://doi.org/10.36922/ghes.3992