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HEALTH-VIRUS-WHO
WHO urges rich countries to stop jumping vaccine queue
GENEVA, Jan 8, 2021 (BSS/AFP) – The World Health Organization on
Friday urged rich countries to stop jumping the queue and making
bilateral deals for the first wave of Covid-19 vaccines.
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that right from the
outset, wealthier nations had snapped up the majority of the supply of
multiple vaccines — potentially bumping up the price for everyone
else battling the coronavirus pandemic.
He called on states that have booked excess vaccine doses to release
them and donate them to the globally-shared Covax programme, which
aims to distribute vaccines equitably around the world.
“I urge countries that have contracted more vaccines than they will
need, and are controlling the global supply, to also donate and
release them to Covax immediately, which is ready today to roll out
quickly,” Tedros told a press conference in Geneva.
“And I urge countries and manufacturers to stop making bilateral
deals at the expense of Covax.”
No country was exceptional and should cut the queue and vaccinate
all their population while some remain with no supply of the vaccine,
he said.
“Science has delivered; let’s not waste the opportunity to protect
lives of those most at risk and ensure all economies have a fair shot
at recovery.”
Tedros said 42 countries had started rolling out their Covid-19
vaccination programme. He said 36 of them were high-income nations and
six were middle-income.
“There’s a clear problem that low- and most middle-income countries
are not receiving the vaccine yet.
“At the outset, rich countries have bought up the majority of the
supply of multiple vaccines.”
Covax, the globally-pooled vaccine procurement and distribution
effort, has struck agreements for two billion vaccine doses.
Covax aims to secure vaccines for 20 percent of the population in
each participating country by the end of the year, with funding
covered for the 92 lower- and lower-middle income economies involved
in the scheme.
It is co-led by the WHO, the Gavi vaccine alliance and the Coalition
for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI).
BSS/AFP/MRU/2343hrs