Securitizing Infectious Diseases as National Security Agenda

- Sudeep Uprety

The Covid-19 pandemic has already been a global crisis with over 1 million deaths and huge economic impact at an unprecedented level.T his extent of rise in people’s mobility followed by rapid urbanization has led to easy transmission of pathogens and increased global burden of infectious diseases. Historically, infectious diseases have been the most important contributor to human morbidity and mortality. While migration, on one hand been a ‘blessing‘, with free movement of goods, capital and labour between countries, on the other hand, been a ‘curse‘ in disguise, with increased vulnerabilities to some of the deadliest and life disabling viral diseases. The rapid spread of infectious diseases such as Covid-19, Zika, HIV/AIDS, Ebola, Avian Influenza, SARS and MERS-CoV have been terrorizing the current global population.