Geneva, Nov 13 : The unequal distribution of Covid-19 boosters in rich countries, as many poor countries struggle to get even their first shots is a “scandal” that must end, World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has said.Geneva, Nov 13, : .The inequal distribution of Covid-19 boosters between rich and poor countries is a scandal that must be ended, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director General of World Health Organization (WHO), stated.At a media briefing on Friday, Ghebreyesus said that countries with high vaccination rates are continuing to stockpile booster doses, while poor countries continue to wait.
Ghebreyesus stated that countries with high vaccination rates continue to stockpile booster doses while the poor wait.
“Every day, there are six times more boosters administered globally than primary doses in low-income countries,” Ghebreyesus said.
Ghebreyesus stated that boosters are administered six times as often globally each day than primary doses in low income countries.
“This is a scandal that must stop now,” he added.He added, “This is a scandal and must end now.”
The WHO chief criticised the distribution of boosters to healthy adults saying that “it makes no sense to give boosters to healthy adults, or to vaccinate children, when health workers, older people and other high-risk groups around the world are still waiting for their first dose.”.The WHO chief criticized the distribution of boosters for healthy adults.He stated that it was “incongruous to give boosters for healthy adults or to vaccinate kids, while health workers, older persons, and other high-risk populations around the globe are still waiting their first dose.”
However, he said that there is an exception — immunocompromised individuals.He said, however, that there was an exception: immunocompromised people.
Inequitable vaccine distribution has hit Africa particularly hard, where just 6 per cent of the continent’s population is fully vaccinated against Covid, the WHO’s Regional Office for Africa reported as of October 28.Africa has been particularly affected by inequitable vaccine distribution.Only 6 percent of Africans are fully vaccinated against Covid according to the WHO Regional Office for Africa.
“Vaccines alone will not end the pandemic, but we cannot end the pandemic unless we solve the global vaccine crisis,” Ghebreyesus said.Ghebreyesus stated that “Vaccines alone won’t end the pandemic.But we can end the pandemic only if we solve the global vaccination crisis.”
The WHO previously set a goal of vaccinating 40 per cent of the population of every country by the end of the year, but more than 100 countries are currently short of the target, WHO Chief Scientist Dr.Soumya Swaminathan said at the briefing, CNBC reported.CNBC reported that the WHO had previously set a goal to vaccinate 40% of all countries by the end of this year.
However, more than 100 countries are still short of this target as Dr.Soumya Swminathan, WHO Chief Scientist, stated at the briefing.
Swaminathan added that the WHO would likely miss that goal unless COVAX, the WHO’s initiative for providing Covid shots for at least 20 per cent of countries’ populations, received approximately 500 million more doses to distribute.Swaminathan said that the WHO could not achieve that goal unless COVAX (the WHO’s initiative to provide Covid shots to at least 20% of the world’s population) received 500 million more doses.
Just five countries in Africa have vaccinated more than 35 per cent of their populations, including Morocco, Tunisia and Mauritius, according to Our World in Data, which compiles vaccination figures from official public reports.According to Our World in Data which compiles vaccination statistics from public reports, only five African countries have vaccinated over 35% of their population.
But those reports also indicate that the majority of African nations have fully vaccinated less than 10 per cent of their populations.However, these reports also show that less than 10% of African countries have been fully vaccinated #poor #wait #covid #booster #isscandal
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