Rich nations should ensure equitable access to vaccines
Wealthy nations have come under fire for fighting over limited COVID-19 vaccine supplies amid the ongoing pandemic. This ugly “vaccine nationalism” raises fears that the developed world will hog doses, leaving poorer nations behind when it comes to securing vaccines.
World Health Organization (WHO) Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned Friday against vaccine nationalism, saying that the pandemic had exposed and exploited inequalities, and expressing his concern that there was a “real danger that the very tools that could help end the pandemic ― vaccines ― may exacerbate those same inequalities.” The warning came as the vaccine developed by AstraZeneca had become the source of a diplomatic row between the European Union and Britain over which countries will get the scarce doses currently available. The dispute eased as the EU backtracked on its threat to restrict vaccine exports to Northern Ireland after Britain voiced “grave concerns.”
The EU-U.K. tussle reflects countries' extreme competition to get vaccines first in pursuit of nationalistic self-interest. In fact, rich countries have taken the lion's share of inoculations according to reports that countries with 16 percent of the world's population have secured 60 percent of total vaccine supplies. As international cooperation is essential to cope with COVID-19, this vaccine nationalism will only prolong the pandemic. So it was timely for Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha to urge the world to ensure a fair and equitable supply of vaccines and treatments, voicing concern about vaccine nationalism, at an online session of the World Economic Forum, Friday.
Clearly, vaccine nationalism won't end COVID-19. It's impossible to end a pandemic by inoculating only citizens of select nations. Not only will this not end the global health issue, it could be damaging on an economic level. A report published by the Eurasia Group revealed that if higher-income countries collaborated to ensure equitable distribution of vaccines, the economic benefit would amount to a staggering $153 billion in 2020-21 alone. It may be late, but wealthy nations should do more to let COVAX, the WHO-supported initiative to ensure fair access to vaccines, work properly so that more people in poor countries can be inoculated.