The third Covid-19 vaccine dose has been launched in many countries, especially in developed countries. This wealthy countries’ strategy has been sharply condemned for several months by the WHO and the UN. “Not to have equitable distribution of vaccines is not only a question of being immoral, it is also a question of being stupid”, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said during a press conference held this October 7.
Unequal distribution of Covid vaccines “is the best ally of the Covid-19 pandemic”, he added, explaining: “It is allowing variants to develop and run wild, condemning the world to millions more deaths, and prolonging an economic slowdown”.
Also participating in the press brief, World Health Organization (WHO) Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said 56 countries have still not managed to vaccinate 10% of their population, “through no fault of their own”, but because they lack vaccines. From now on, the WHO wishes 40% of the population of each country to be vaccinated by the end of the year and 70% by mid-2022.
But as Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus explained: “Achieving these targets will require at least 11 billion vaccine doses. This is not a supply problem. It is an allocation problem”. To make it, the Who wants to develop international Covax action. It once again calls for wealthy countries to share doses and vaccinate first people who are vulnerable and elderly, as well as healthcare staff.
