IT is totally repulsive when a country makes a bungled response to the pandemic, particularly in acquiring and distributing the Covid vaccine. Timely and effective response spells the success or failure in dealing with any catastrophe. For instance, we have read unfortunate accounts where the Trump administration had mishandled government efforts to curtail the spread of the coronavirus and its apathy to enforce health protocols. These are man-made disasters that exacerbate the virulence of the pandemic.
The arrival of the Covid-19 vaccine is one positive development in men’s battle against the pandemic. The bad news is that there is unequal worldwide distribution of the vaccine. While most rich countries will be able to inoculate their vulnerable population by the second quarter of 2021, and achieve the desired herd immunity before the end of the year, many poorer nations may not be able to make meaningful vaccination coverage to make an impact this year. Poor countries will lag behind since they can hardly afford the costs of providing free vaccines to their citizens. Unilateral action by well-to-do states will not make a significant impact unless the measures undertaken are worldwide. We are dealing with a global pandemic that necessitates collective action. Any health deterioration in countries that failed to get the vaccine will be injurious to all. It’s a recipe for further disaster.
Everyone should support the global initiative to make the vaccine accessible to all. Bill Gates made the observation that there is a yawning gap between the rich and poor countries when it comes to vaccine rollout. He estimated that destitute countries suffer at least a 6- to 8-month lag behind wealthy nations in bringing the first vaccine shots into the arms of their people. The cost of getting the volume of vaccines needed and its limited supply have caused some sense of insecurity and panic in many countries. Even the prosperous countries with deep pockets to finance the cost of the vaccines have serious concerns. The current squabble between the European Union and AstraZeneca is a case in point. Delay in the delivery of the vaccine despite agreement or commitment by the drugmaker for an earlier procurement date has upset the timetable of countries like Italy, France, Spain and Germany. Only recently, Moderna, a US-based drug company, has announced that it would reduce the shipment of vaccine doses to Canada, scheduled next month. Delays and undersupply of vaccines will definitely be a critical blow to the vaccination program of the countries concerned. Every day of delay will cause untold deaths and sufferings to many people. If countries that can afford the vaccine are still hobbled by problems in getting them, can you imagine what logistical nightmare the cash-strapped nations face? The EU charged that the drug companies are cutting supplies intended for the EU countries in order to sell doses to other nations at higher prices. Thus, the EU authorities have proposed to impose export control measures to ensure that vaccines intended for its members are not deployed outside the continent. Drugmakers based in the Eurozone shall be required to secure prior clearance before they can sell to other countries.
There is a mad scramble to vaccinate people. The race to get the supply of vaccines ahead of the others is disadvantageous to countries with fewer resources. There should be a more balanced system to ensure that every country has the opportunity to get the vaccine on time. This prompted Tedros Ghebreyesus, Director General of the World Health Organization, to warn that the world was on the brink of a catastrophic moral failure because of the inequitable access to the Covid-19 vaccine. He direly predicted that “ultimately, these actions will only prolong the pandemic, the restrictions needed to contain it, and human and economic suffering.”
The so-called vaccine nationalism, which may even amount to hoarding the vaccine, will only wreak havoc on the global efforts to defeat the pandemic. Focusing exclusively on one’s own interest during the time of a pandemic would be self-destructive. Opulent countries should rise above self-interest to optimize the scarce supply of vaccines. It’s time to outgrow the narrow insular view in favor of international efforts and cooperation. In the face of the coronavirus, no nation is an island and isolates itself from the rest of the suffering world. Some countries have already obtained future supplies equivalent to twice to six times the doses they actually need. That is unconscionable and immoral in the face of the difficulty of some countries to get their first dose. This should be stopped, and the excess doses should be distributed to laggard countries without vaccines. It is laudable that the WHO, in partnership with several NGOs like the Gates Foundation, has organized an effort named COVAX, to distribute vaccines to poor countries. This is a huge undertaking that needs very substantial resources. Right now, it is still underfunded but it targets to start delivering vaccines within the next two months. While the COVAX program aims to vaccinate only 20% of the population of the countries included, it will cover a sizable base upon which the host country can build upon using its meager resources. In countries where getting the vaccine poses a formidable challenge, the COVAX assistance will go a long way in initiating its vaccination program.
The vaccine is the light at the end of the tunnel. We may finally see the end of this pandemic, which has disrupted the entire world, but the return to normalcy won’t happen to all nations at the same time. Rich countries will be at the finish line ahead of the disadvantaged countries still struggling to get the vaccine. The former will have their vulnerable population inoculated by the end of the first quarter of 2021 and hope to achieve mass immunity before the end of the year. For poor nations, it may take another year or two before they attain the same level of success. Indigent countries face insurmountable challenges to acquire and roll out the vaccine. It is a race to survival, or death, and unfortunately, time is running out.