Leaders who've handled Covid pandemic the Best and Worst

The Covid-19 pandemic that has already claimed the lives of more than 3,472,068 people in the world. 

Ground report | New Delhi: They are some of the most negligent world leaders in the fight against coronavirus. But some current and former world leaders have made little effort to deal with the outbreak in their country, whether by reducing the severity of the epidemic, disregarding science, or ignoring important health interventions such as social distance and masks. All the men on this list made at least one of those mistakes, and some made them all - with fatal consequences.

Narendra Modi of India

(By Sumit Ganguly, Indiana University)

India is the new epicenter of the global epidemic, registering around 400,000 new cases daily by May 2021. However, this data fails to capture the horrors that unfold there. COVID-19 patients Hospitals are dying because doctors do not have oxygen to deliver and there is no life-saving drug like Remdesivir. The sick are turned away from clinics that do not have free beds. Many Indians hold one person responsible for the country's tragedy: Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil

Elize Massard da Fonseca, Fundação Getulio Vargas and Scott L. Greer, University of Michigan

Not only did Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro fail to respond to COVID-19 - which he derides as a "small flu" - he actively worsened the crisis in Brazil. Bolsonaro used his constitutional powers to intervene in the administrative affairs of the Ministry of Health, such as clinical protocols, data disclosure and vaccine procurement. They vetoed legislation that would have mandated the use of masks at religious sites and compensated health professionals permanently damaged by the epidemic, for example, And he interrupted state government efforts to promote social disturbances and used his decree power to allow many businesses, including spas and gyms, to remain open as "necessary".

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Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus

Elizabeth J. King and Scott L. Greer, University of Michigan

Many countries around the world have responded to COVID-19 with tragically inadequate policies. However, we argue that the worse epidemic leaders are the handful who chose complete denial over ineffective action.

Alexander Lukashenko, a longtime authoritarian leader of Belarus, has never acknowledged the threat of COVID-19. At the onset of the epidemic, as other countries were implementing lockdowns, Lukashenko opted not to implement any restrictive measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Instead, he claimed that the virus could be prevented by drinking vodka, going to the sauna, and working in the fields. This refusal essentially gave up preventive measures and epidemic aid to individuals and crowdfunding campaigns.

Donald Trump of the United States

Dorothy Chin, University of California, Los Angeles

Trump is out of office, but his misgivings about the epidemic continue to have disastrous long-term consequences on the United States - particularly on the health and well-being of communities of color.

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Andrés Manuel López Obrador of Mexico

Salvador Vázquez del Mercado, Centro de Investigación y Docencia Económicas

Mexico has the highest mortality rate in the world, with 9.2% of its COVID-19 patients dying from the disease. Recent estimates suggest that it is likely to have killed 617,000 people - equivalent to the US and India, with both countries having a much larger population.

The combination of factors contributed to Mexico's prolonged, excessive COVID-19 outbreak. And insufficient national leadership was one of them.

Here is a list of five countries that had some of the best responses to tackling COVID-19.

Taiwan Government (1,153 cases, 12 deaths)

Taiwan was testing and quarantining passengers from Wuhan, China, before coronaviruses were even recorded on other governments' radar.

The island's network with China gave it a clearer view of the now-global epidemic's original epicenter, enabling it to act quickly - deploying a strategy that has proven to be the most successful in the world.

New Zealand PM (2,629 cases, 26 deaths)

New Zealand wasted no time in preventing the spread of COVID-19 in their country.

On 28 January 2020, the Ministry of Health established the National Health Coordination Center (NHCC) to respond to the outbreak. A contagious and notified disease order was issued to take effect from 30 January 2020, requiring health practitioners to report any suspected case under the Health Act 1956. This was the first barrier of protection for New Zealand.

Iceland Government (6,491 cases, 29 deaths)

Iceland's success is partly low for its small population of about 364,000 - but early vigilance and action were also important to keep the case numbers down.

Singapore (61,252 cases, 31 deaths)

Timely preparation, invasive testing, detection of carriers and little luck helped to limit the impact of COVID-19 in Singapore. The city-state's relatively small population of 5.7 million people and SARS 'experience in 2003 gave it the upper hand against the encroaching virus.

Vietnam (2,995 cases, 35 deaths)

When the first coronavirus case was confirmed in Vietnam on 23 January 2020, its emergency plan was immediately put into effect - months before other countries also considered taking any precautions. The country brought travel restrictions, closely monitored and eventually closed the border with China, and increased health checks at the borders.

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