To prepare for a possible future pandemic, Belgium is allocating €7 million to scientific studies looking into the consequences of the Covid-19 crisis and its policy to draw the necessary lessons for the Federal Government.
Since the beginning of the Covid-19 crisis over three years ago, science has provided a wealth of data and analysis that has helped authorities understand and address the crisis. In the spring of 2020, the Belgian Science Policy Office (BELSPO) issued a call for scientific proposals on how to counteract the pandemic. When wanting to learn lessons and prepare for a possible new crisis, it is vital to understand the complex social processes that the virus disrupted.
"It is essential to study the various aspects of the Covid-19 crisis and draw the necessary lessons from it. This scientific work should enable us to prepare for the aftermath of the Covid pandemic and any other pandemics," said State Secretary for Science Policy Thomas Dermine. "If there is one positive effect of this crisis, it is that it has put science more firmly on the map."
Supporting evidence-based policy
Scientific research, he stressed, has been able to mitigate the impact of the crisis, it is now also the government's responsibility to provide the necessary resources to learn from it. With the launch of this comprehensive multi-annual programme, the focus can be on research in support of policy priorities.
"We are doing this in close cooperation with the Health Minister and the FPS Public Health to ensure the link between science and policy. This research programme will serve as a model for reforming future research programmes," Dermine said. "In this way, we support evidence-based policy."
The aim of this programme is therefore to invite Belgian researchers to explore these grey zones, grouped into four themes: well-being, inequalities and vulnerabilities, democratic governance, and pandemic intelligence. The scientific results obtained should then be converted into useful policy recommendations for the Federal Government.
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"Two elements saved us from the Covid pandemic: solidarity and science," said Federal Health and Social Affairs Minister Frank Vandenbroucke. "This programme combines these two aspects, aiming to learn from the past and explore what could be better in the future. It is the only way to prepare together for tomorrow's challenges."
On the broad welfare and health front, Vandenbroucke expects very concrete recommendations: "What impact have we not yet identified and what has worked well, and how can we as a government take this into account or even still adjust now?"
