Islamabad, 11 November 2021 (TDI): Pakistan was ranked first on The Economist’s world normalcy ranking after the country dropped most of the COVID-19 restrictions meant to prevent the virus from spreading.
The normalcy index of the Economist provides some evidence of how people react to restrictions in real time. Nigeria, the United Kingdom, and Germany are next on the list, which was last updated on Friday (Nov 5).
عالمی جریدے اکنامسٹ کے نارملی انڈیکس کیمطابق COVID-19 کے باوجود جن ممالک میں حالات نارمل ہورہے پاکستان ان میں سرفہرست ہے۔ اس کا کریڈٹ وزیراعظم عمران خان کی متوازن فیصلہ سازی اور NCOC کیجانب بہترین عملداری کو جاتا ہے۔ pic.twitter.com/hQKVDahm2k
— Farrukh Habib (@FarrukhHabibISF) November 8, 2021
Farrukh Habib, the State Minister for Information and Broadcasting, stated that Pakistan was ranked first in The Economist’s World Normalcy Index due to Prime Minister Imran Khan’s balanced decision-making and the National Command and Operation Centre’s execution (NCOC).
In a tweet, he claimed that Pakistan had been ranked number 1 in the list of countries where Covid-induced restrictions have been relaxed, according to The Economist’s world normality index.
Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry also lauded The Economist ranking, saying: “Pak tops World normalcy index….shows our huge success fighting Covid Pandemic”.
Pak tops World normalcy index….shows our huge success fighting #Covid #Pandamic https://t.co/ycOju02qYE
— Ch Fawad Hussain (@fawadchaudhry) November 8, 2021
The Economist report
Although much of the population in richer countries of the world is now vaccinated, COVID-19 lingers.
The World Health Organization (WHO) warned on November 4 that Covid-19 might cause up to 500,000 additional deaths in Europe and Central Asia by February 1.
The Economist said, adding that cases are likely to rise in the coming months as cold weather in the northern hemisphere forces people to spend more time inside.
“Yet policymakers may worry that complacency about COVID-19, especially among the vaccinated, will lead to people ignoring new restrictions and not using face masks,” it added.
The Economist’s normalcy index tracks eight different metrics of human behaviour, from travel to sporting attendance, across 50 countries that together account for about 90% of the world’s GDP and 75% of its population.
In recent months, the normalcy index rose as restrictions were eased, to 79 points (where 100 is equivalent to average pre-pandemic behaviour) — its highest level since March, 2020.
New restrictions and the onset of winter in the northern hemisphere have pushed it slightly lower in recent weeks to 76 points.
