Status quo of outbreak and control of COVID-19 in Southeast Asian Nations during the first phase: A case study for sustainable cities and communities

SARS-CoV2 (COVID-19) outbreak has devastated the whole world both in terms of human loss and the world economy. This chapter presents a comparative assessment of COVID-19 cases within Southeast Asian countries. These countries represent a regional intergovernmental organization called the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and are leading trading partners globally. By analyzing the impact and recovery of COVID-19 cases in each country during the outbreak, this study can facilitate a benchmark for governments, corporations, and individuals to estimate the spread of pandemic and accordingly plan for the potential future disease outbreaks. The spread of COVID-19 and the lasting in these ASEAN countries are estimated using the Susceptible-Infected-Recovered (SIR) model. Evaluating the virus spread and the analyzing the outcomes provide an insight into the strengths and vulnerability of country's infrastructure, policies, people’s preparedness and country's ability to respond to a crisis. Thorough understanding of governmental policies in each country, allows existing and prospective stakeholders to make better decisions of national preventive healthcare, establishing an international corporation system, investing in research and education om infectious diseases, developing/improving national disaster management systems, and review of national and international policies, thus leading to sustainable cities and communities (SDG 11).