Hesbon Owilla 

Everything has practically come to a standstill as the world battles the coronavirus outbreak.

No one is safe from the virus and governments and other global actors are now alive to this fact. 

Countries have imposed total and partial lockdown, paralysing economic activities.

Consequently, some are rolling out stimulus packages to cushion their businesses and the citizens alike. 

But the story is different in the emerging markets and the developing countries. 

On the one hand, governments are afraid of instilling fear while on the other, there is need to tame the virus and have the citizenry updated.

In this age of technological advancement, Kenyans are abreast with what  is happening in China, Italy, France, and literally around the world. 

Globalisation has defined simply and neutrally as the process of increasing inter-connectedness between societies such that events in one part of the world more and more have effects on societies far away.

With consumption of media from across the world, it is important to be cognisant of the risks and opportunities inherent in the ease with which we can learn of the experiences in other hard hit countries to mitigate the impact of the virus, medically known as Covid-19. 

Governments will institute protocols, definitely in the interests of the people, but the onus is on us the people to be cautious and avoid unnecessary panic.

 You see, we have folks who have to go back to their countries, just like we have Kenyans who have to come back home from other countries and probably fly through countries that are on partial lockdown.

We also have businesses that depend on a few necessary travels and because at the moment it seems practically impossible to shut down or lock down Nairobi or the country, a middle ground has to be sought and protocols have to be instituted to protect the citizenry. 

Whereas we depend on the government for these protocols and have the privilege of instantaneously getting information about experiences elsewhere, we probably have a greater responsibility of staying alert and responsible because our government’s actions will be anchored on local realities. 

In fact, globalisation provides a pathway of what we should do to be a lot more effective than the countries that have traversed this path in the last several weeks.

Those countries are not templates to be replicated, and it is asking for too much to expect the same measures.

For instance, whereas critics have suggested a lockdown for the next two weeks, a period within which the few cases can be identified and addressed and before returning to normalcy, there is need for pragmatism. 

Others have suggested that a lockdown can be economically counterproductive and a security risk, because many Kenyans do not have the capacity to stock up. 

There is, therefore, no need to panic because the government seems to be in control. However, even as we exercise caution we are likely to be a lot more confident in the government response, especially on the protocols to tame the virus spread. 

Most importantly, the government should ensure there is no domestic transmission, especially in the critical sectors such as public transport and food chain supply.  —The writer is a PhD candidate in political communication