CARICOM is calling for a global summit on fair vaccine access and distribution
CARICOM headquarters in Guyana.
Kaieteur News – Caribbean Community (CARICOM) is calling for a global summit on equitable access and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines necessary to help countries recover from the current pandemic.
In a statement issued this week, CARICOM expressed deep concern about the current prospect of unfair vaccines. He said, “The reality is that small states will find it difficult to compete in the market to ensure equitable access to vaccines. Given the transmissibility of the virus, all countries are vulnerable and should work together. ”
Therefore, they said the summit should be held including the World Health Organization (WHO) COVID-19 Health Equipment Facilitation Council (ACT). The ACT launched by the WHO has been supporting global efforts to provide equipment to combat the disease since April.
CARICOM said that the unavoidable link between CARICOM countries whether economically, socially, and through travel within the region and internationally makes it important for them to have access to vaccines and is an urgent priority. It was stated that access to the vaccine to the community would be mutually beneficial as it would promote interruption of the transmission of the virus.
In light of this, CARICOM lamented that the community will explore all available options for accessing vaccines to protect the population in all member states from the harms of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Last month, former CARICOM Chairman and Prime Minister of St Vincent and the Grenadines, Dr. Ralph Gonsalves, has urged the region to rely on current protocols in place to combat the pandemic while CARICOM is prioritizing having the resources to get more vaccines.
His statement came after human rights organizations began to advocate for equitable vaccine access and called out the Northern countries for concealing the COVID-19 vaccines.
A doctor, from a group of global human rights organizations called the People’s Vaccine Alliance, Mohga Kamal Yanni said a few weeks ago that rich countries would have bought enough doses to vaccinate their population nearly three times over, while there are from poor enough countries. to immunize health workers and people at risk.
Dr. Gonsalves has indicated that the region is looking to receive its share of COVID-19 vaccines through the COVID-19 Global Vaccine Access Facility (COVAX), which includes organizations such as the World Health Organization, the Coalition for Innovation Readiness Epidemic and GAVI – the Vaccine Alliance. The facility was created in April to ensure that lower-income countries acquire vaccines for at least 20 percent of their population as well as help member countries find cheaper funding.
Guyana is also one of the countries looking to access vaccines through the facility and Health Minister, Dr. Frank Anthony, estimated that the first batch arrived in the second quarter of this year.