Globalization and Post–COVID-19 Public Health Order

Abstract

The outburst and rapid worldwide spread of the COVID-19 pandemic have become the single greatest challenges to humankind today. The adverse impact of the pandemic on the world economy and social order raises the question of whether the existing international public health order is capable of meeting the needs of humankind facing serious infectious diseases like the COVID-19 pandemic. The WHO-led international public health order was formulated at the end of the Second World War and reflected the culture, tradition, and perception of security of Western countries. Stimulated by the process of globalization, national states’ perception of sovereignty, human rights, and interdependence has undergone profound changes. By the very nature of public health, it is closely related to trade and intellectual property, which encouraged and enabled the World Health Organization, the World Trade Organization, and the World Intellectual Property Organization to cooperate closely. Hand in hand with the ever deepening of globalization, public health has become a genuine and important international issue drawing collaboration of many international organizations and ad hoc bodies such as the G20. “There are sure to be bad years following the movement of great armies.” The current international public health order has revealed certain weaknesses and shortcomings that require actions. The system is bound to be reviewed and reformed, which must take into account the interests, cultures, and traditions of the developing countries in the context of global collaboration.