COVID-19: 40 Countries Contribute $6.9 Billion For Vaccine Production
About forty governments participated in a global fundraising summit, pledging a total of $6.9 billion towards the development and distribution of the covid-19 vaccine.
The summit which held on Saturday, was sponsored by the European Union(EU) in partnership with the Global Citizen, an advocacy group.
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Reuters reports that the Commission together with the European Investment Bank pledged 4.9 billion euros ($5.50 billion), the United States $545 million, Germany 383 million euros, Canada C$300 million ($219 million)and Qatar $10 million.
According to E.U. Commission President, Ursula Von Der Leyen, the covid-19 vaccine should be accessible to all.
“I am trying to convince high-income countries to reserve vaccines not only for themselves but also for low- and middle income countries. This is a stress test for solidarity,” she said.
On his part, the British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, stressed that countries must not hoard the vaccine, if and when it comes out.
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“If and when an effective vaccine is found, then we as world leaders have moral duty to ensure that it is truly available to all,” he said.
Recall that the World Health Organization (WHO) had maintained that the covid-19 pandemic can only be effectively contained when a vaccine is out and mass produced.
