PREVENTING THE RESURGENCE OF COVID-19 PANDEMIC AND SIMILAR EPIDEMICS: THE NEED FOR ONE HEALTH APPROACH

Abstract

Epidemiological evidences over the decades suggest that about 60% to 75% of emerging human infectious diseases are transmitted by animals, especially wildlife. This is as a result of the increasing interface between human, wild animals and environment caused by the destruction of natural habitats by human activities and climate change. The recent link of COVID-19 to the seafood and animals’ market in Wuhan China, and the 98.99% shared resemblance of the virus to the genetic sequence of bat coronavirus holds a strong suspicion for zoonotic transmission. However, efforts towards controlling the pandemic have been centered on human health, with little or no attention on the animal and environment hosts. This paper proposes one health approach as a strategy that could control the resurgence of COVID-19 and similar zoonotic diseases outbreak.