The country underestimated its second Covid wave

June 01, 2021: -Nepal underestimated its wave of Covid-19 infections for the second time and needs to step up its efforts to address the crisis, Nepali billionaire Binod Chaudhary said in the previous week. The country also should not hold its elections until the situation stabilizes, he said.

“I must admit, we probably underestimated, as a nation, the intensity of the second wave,” he told.

The South Asian country’s Covid cases surged in April and hit new record highs in May.

According to data from local health authorities, as of May 30, Nepal has reported 557,124 coronavirus infections and 7,272 deaths.

The situation is the same as what’s playing out in neighboring India, On Friday, which has the second-highest number of cases in the world.

Chaudhary, chairman of CG Corp Global, based in Nepal, said the first wave was bad enough and the country was “crippled” for nearly three months, though it managed to recover.”it’s the worst time,” he added.

He added the Medical system of Nepal under pressure, with lesser oxygen, ventilators, and intensive care beds.

World Bank data shows that in 2018, Nepal had 0.749 physicians per 1,000 people. That’s less than 0.857 in India and 2.812 in the U.K. this year.

According to Our World in Data, inoculations in Nepal have been hampered by supply, and only around 2.25% of the country’s 29 million residents are fully vaccinated.“We were counting on India,” Chaudhary said.

India manufactures a hub for vaccines and has donated shots to neighboring countries. Nepal purchased doses, but India stopped exports to prioritize domestic demand in February.

“We’re looking for other sources of supply,” he said. “We need to step up all our efforts rapidly.”

He further said that CG Corp Global had mobilized its network, and it helps to get the oxygen and ventilators into Nepal. The company’s nonprofit arm donates around $1 million to deal with the health emergency.

Chaudhary called on the world to “give special emphasis to countries such as Nepal” regarding vaccines.

“This country needs to be kept safe and protected,” he said. Nepal shares a border with both India and China and is “strategically located, yet small,” he said, which predicts that the problem could be solved “pretty quickly.”

Some nations have sent aid in the form of medical supplies and personal protective equipment. China has donated 800,000 doses of its Sinopharm-developed vaccine to Nepal.