W.H.O. Warns Wealthy Countries Are Undermining Covax Program

The G7 countries have shown leadership, but we need all countries to step up. We still face a gap of at least $22.9 billion U.S. dollars to fully finance the ACT Accelerator this year. It’s important to note, however, that money is not the only challenge we face. If there are no vaccines to buy, money is irrelevant. Currently, some high-income countries are entering contracts with vaccine manufacturers that undermine the deals that Covax has in place and reduce the number of doses Covax can buy. Even if we have the funds, we can only deliver vaccines to poorer countries if high-income countries cooperate in respecting the deals Covax has done. This is not a matter of charity. It’s a matter of epidemiology. Unless we end the pandemic everywhere, we will not end it anywhere.