WHO Director-General criticizes unfair COVID-19 vaccine distribution

WHO Director-General criticizes unfair COVID-19 vaccine distribution. The WHO Director-General was angry: “The world is on the verge of a’catastrophic moral decline’.”

“The world is on the verge of a’catastrophic moral decay’.” On the 18th, World Health Organization Director-General Tan Desai criticized the unfair distribution of the global COVID-19 vaccine.

He said that at least 49 high-income countries have received more than 39 million doses of vaccine, while a lowest-income country has received only 25 doses.

At present, the world, especially the northern hemisphere, is at the most critical and severe time since the outbreak of the epidemic due to the severe cold winter. Although many countries have begun to vaccinate the COVID-19 vaccine, the uneven distribution, the confusion of vaccination management, and the people in Western countries vaccinating Pfizer, etc. Serious adverse reactions and even deaths after the vaccine have caused people to worry that the time of the global pandemic may be prolonged, and humans will pay more lives and economic costs.

At a moment when the world should have been more united to fight the epidemic, politicians and media in some Western countries such as the United States are still actively fighting the epidemic and actively “shake the pot.”

On the 18th, the WHO New coronavirus Pneumonia Epidemic Assessment Expert Group released an interim report. Some Western media hyped up the content that “China could have adopted more powerful public health measures in January last year” and even claimed that China and the WHO “ The response is too slow to lead to a pandemic.”

In this regard, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying stated on the 19th that China, as the first country to sound the global anti-epidemic alert, faced a new type of virus unknown to mankind. Even when the information was not comprehensive at the time, it acted decisively. Decisive decisions have bought time for the fight against the epidemic and reduced infections and deaths. Such achievements have been recognized by scientists and medical experts from various countries.

“Not 25 million doses, but 25 doses”

On the 18th local time, the WHO held the 148th Executive Committee meeting by video. WHO Director-General Tedros Tedros said at the opening ceremony of the meeting that as the world’s first batch of vaccines begin to be vaccinated, vaccines will be distributed fairly Is facing serious risks.

So far, at least 49 high-income countries have received more than 39 million doses of vaccine, and a lowest-income country has received only 25 doses of vaccine, “not 25 million doses, not 25,000 doses, but 25 doses.” “I must say bluntly that the world is on the verge of a’catastrophic moral decay’, and the price is the lives and livelihoods of poor countries.” Tan Desai said that it is unreasonable for younger, healthier adults in rich countries to receive the COVID-19 vaccine earlier than elderly people and medical staff in poor countries.

He called on all countries to unite to ensure that healthcare workers and the elderly in all countries can be vaccinated within the first 100 days of this year.

Tan Desai also criticized some countries and companies without name. He said that most vaccine manufacturers put profits first, bypassing the WHO-led Covid-19 Vaccine Implementation Plan (COVAX), and prioritizing direct supply of vaccines to rich countries, which pushed up Prices have led to market chaos and hindered the WHO’s vaccine procurement process. Tedros said that this “me first” approach encourages hoarding and will ultimately only extend the time of the pandemic.

According to statistics from Agence France-Presse, as of the 18th, 40.06 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been vaccinated globally, and at least 60 countries or regions have launched vaccination campaigns, but more than 90% of vaccinations are concentrated in 11 countries. Israel has the highest rate of vaccinations, accounting for nearly a quarter of the total population; the United States is the country with the largest number of vaccinated populations, with 10.6 million people vaccinated with 12.28 million doses. In Europe, the United Kingdom is the most vaccinated with 4.31 million doses of vaccine. More than 5 million doses have been vaccinated across EU member states, and Italy and Germany have both received more than 1 million doses.

The British “Daily Telegraph” stated that the WHO is worried that vaccine distribution will become another brick on the inequality between rich and poor countries around the world. According to the report, in the global distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine, the gap between rich and poor countries is very obvious: more than a quarter of Israel’s population has been vaccinated with Pfizer, the United States has vaccinated more than 10 million people with the first dose of vaccine, and Canada has purchased enough Every citizen is vaccinated with 5 doses of vaccine, and Guinea currently only vaccinates 25 people, including the president, with the Russian “Satellite-V” vaccine.

Euronews stated that the world must avoid the mistakes made during the AIDS and H1N1 avian flu pandemics. After the AIDS outbreak occurred 40 years ago and related drugs were developed, some drugmakers in rich countries hoarded a lot for profit, and poor countries did not obtain drugs until more than a decade later. This resulted in the death toll of AIDS as high as more than 8,000 people per day. Twelve years ago, when the H1N1 avian flu broke out, rich countries also developed vaccines, but poor countries did not get vaccines for a long time, and tens of thousands of people died. When the vaccines were obtained in poor countries, the epidemic was over.

China’s vaccine becomes a realistic choice for low-income countries

Sun Keqin, a researcher at the China Institute of Modern International Relations, said in an interview with a reporter from the Global Times on the 19th that the World Health Organization’s most worrying issue is vaccine nationalism. Looking at it now, this is both a worry and an objective reality. Western vaccine manufacturers are all private organizations, and they treat vaccines as huge business opportunities and money-making opportunities. In addition, the governments of the United States, Europe and other countries also use vaccines as a means to get rid of the epidemic, quickly restore the economy and attract votes, and they will definitely satisfy their own needs first. In this case, it is almost impossible for poor countries to get vaccines. Even if they get the vaccine, whether they can afford to pay is also a question.

Agence France-Presse stated that there are currently 7 vaccines in circulation around the world. Among them, North America, Europe, Israel and the Gulf countries mainly use the vaccines produced by Pfizer and Moderna in the United States; most of them in the UK are vaccinated by the vaccines developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca; Russia’s “Satellite-V” vaccine has been vaccinated in Russia, Belarus, Argentina, and Serbia; China, the UAE, Jordan, Bahrain, Turkey, Indonesia and other countries use the vaccine developed by Sinopharm Group and Kexing Company; India mainly vaccinates locally developed vaccines vaccine.

Sun Keqin said that from this statistics, it can be seen that the emergence of vaccines in China has greatly enriched the range of options for other countries, especially developing countries. China is committed to making vaccines a global public product, and our vaccines are cheaper, and storage and transportation conditions are not so harsh. At present, Chinese vaccines have become a realistic choice for many low-income countries. This is also our contribution to the community of shared future for mankind.

Some Western countries have tried their best to defend themselves against WHO’s criticism. The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) stated that Canada has become a target of criticism, but Gould, the Minister of International Development of Canada, said that any accusations of the stockpiling of vaccines in Canada are “hypothetical” because most vaccines have not been delivered.

The Associated Press stated that on the 18th, a WHO official accused Israel of being responsible for the vaccinations of Palestinians. He suggested that Israel distribute some vaccines to Palestine. Palestine has not received a dose of vaccine. But Israel insists that its citizens should be given priority, claiming that it may distribute some vaccines to Pakistan in the future.

There are only more than 500 cases

(source:internet, reference only)

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