Government has been asked to be one step ahead as far as the issue of pandemics is concerned to avoid facing challenges whenever the country starts to register cases of any pandemic.
The call was made on Friday during a media science on preparing for the next pandemic which was conducted by Journalists Association Against AIDS (JournAIDS) on Friday at its offices in Lilongwe.
Speaking with reporters, Programs Manager for JournAIDS Dingaan Mithi said that pandemics come in different ways and they can be easily managed if all the necessary measures have been put in place to control the situation if it worsens.
He added that if the country fails to prepare for pandemics on time the country can experience a disaster which can lead to dismay .
“As a country we need to prepare because we never know what another pandemic could come which will catch us unaware. Like what happened when COVID-19 came for the first in Malawi, there was poor communication, misuse of financial resources , miscommunication to the media which was pathetic,” he explained.
He noted that lack of preparedness on pandemics can lead to loss of lives because the pandemics come with a force and if the country fails to manage the situation on time a lot of lives can be in danger.
Mithi then appealed to government more especially the ministry of health to engage the media at early stage of pandemics to avoid misinforming the public at large.
He also emphasized on training the media practitioners in advance so that when the country starts to register cases of pandemics the media should be at forefront informing the public with firsthand information and also accurate one.
