World Health Organization urged all countries to make a donation of 10 million coronavirus vaccine doses in order to ensure all countries in the world get equitable access to the vaccines within the first 100 days of 2021, as per media reports.

The World Health Organization’s director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus maintained that the countries are in a rush to secure vaccines because of which they have delayed their deliveries to the COVAX scheme launched by the WHO to deliver vaccines to poorer nations. He further asked these countries to donate the spare doses to poorer nations.

Also read: More companies need to license out vaccine technology to improve access: WHO chief

Tedros revealed that the multilateral organisation expected that all countries would begin their vaccination drive within the first 100 days of this year. However, as many as 36 countries have not received even a single dose of the vaccine to administer to their people.

Briefing the press, he stated that 16 of those were scheduled to receive their first doses through Covax within the remaining 15 days. However, that left 20 countries that were going to miss out.

Also read: Delay in Covid-19 vaccine supplies from Serum Institute to continue into April: WHO

“Getting all countries started by day 100 is a solvable problem. Covax needs 10 million doses immediately as an urgent stop-gap measure so these 20 countries can start vaccinating their health workers and older people within the next two weeks,” Tedros said.

“So today I’m asking countries with doses of vaccines that have WHO emergency use listing to donate as many doses as they can to help us meet that target. Ten million doses are not much, and it is not nearly enough, but it is a start,” he added.

comment COMMENT NOW