Covid-19 vaccine: the UN calls for equitable access to Covax
The Secretary General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, wants the 193 member countries of the United Nations to commit to equitable access to the vaccine against Covid-19.
ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP
Text by: RFI Follow
3 min
The UN celebrated its 75th anniversary in relative discretion on Monday, September 21.
The heads of state begin to speak on Tuesday morning at the Annual General Assembly.
The United Nations announced through the voice of the WHO that more than 60 rich countries had already joined its Covax system for access to the vaccine against Covid-19.
Publicity
Read more
With our correspondent in New York
,
Carrie Nooten
This is one of Secretary General Antonio Guterres' two wishes, in addition to seeing his call for a comprehensive ceasefire adopted by all: that the 193 member countries of the United Nations commit to equitable access to the
vaccine against the Covid-19
.
The first good news came from the WHO, which announced on Monday that 64 rich countries had already joined the device for access to the future vaccine, called Covax.
More than 90 low and middle income countries are expected to join the scheme.
The big absent from this list are the United States, which had anyway confirmed
their withdrawal from the WHO in
early July, but more surprisingly China, where
the first cases of coronavirus were detected at the
end of December 2019. The Alliance du vaccine, Gavi, this WHO partner organization for the Covax device, says talks with Beijing are still ongoing.
The goal is to have 2 billion doses of vaccine available by the end of 2021, while the WHO begins to sign agreements with laboratories.
All the same, Covax member countries will have to honor their commitments.
However, for the moment, the UN has received only $ 3 billion out of the $ 38 billion requested.
64 higher income economies have now joined the COVAX Facility, a global initiative bringing together governments and manufacturers to ensure eventual # COVID19 vaccines reach those in greatest need, whoever they are and wherever they live https://t.co/6KyDZ6TWWE pic.twitter .com / QQeyBg01xm
World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) September 21, 2020
►
To read: The 75th UN General Assembly turned upside down by the Covid-19
Newsletter
Receive all the international news directly in your mailbox
I subscribe
Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application
google-play-badge_FR
UN
Coronavirus
Health and medicine
Diplomacy
WHO
On the same subject
Coronavirus: vaccines monopolized by rich countries, according to Oxfam