Covid crisis in India a sign that worst may be yet to come: IMF IMF proposes $50 bn vax plan

Washington, May 22: Observing that the ongoing “catastrophic” second wave of Covid-19 in India is a sign that the worst may be yet to come, the IMF has said that the situation in the country is a warning of the possible events in low- and middleincome nations that have seemingly escaped the pandemic till now.

A report co-authored by International Monetary Fund (IMF) economist Ruchir Agarwal and its Chief Economist Gita Gopinath said that under the business-as-usual scenario, the vaccine coverage in India is expected to remain under 35 per cent of the population in 2021.

The second wave in India, following a terrible wave in Brazil, is a sign the worst may be yet to come in the developing world, it said. While India’s health system held up fairly well in the first wave, this time its health system is so overwhelmed that many people are dying because of a lack of oxygen, hospital beds, and medical care, it said.

“India is a warning of possible events in other low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) that so far have seemingly escaped the pandemic, including in Africa, it said.

For India, the report said, current bilateral purchases of vaccine plus coverage from COVAX will cover about 25 per cent of its population by the first half of 2022.

To get to 60 per cent coverage, India will need to immediately place sufficient vaccine orders of about 1 billion doses through contracts.

Washington, 22: The International Monetary Fund has proposed a

$50 billion global vaccination plan that would cover at least 40 per cent of the global population by the end of 2021 and at least 60 per cent by the first half of

2022.

With strong and coordinated action now and with little in terms of financing relative to the outsized benefits the world can durably exit this unprecedented health and economic crisis, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said in her address to the G20 Health Summit.

For some time, we have been warning of dangerous divergence of economic fortunes.

It will only worsen as the gap widens between wealthy countries that have access to vaccines and poor countries that do not, she said.

First, vaccinating of at least 40 per cent of the global population by end2021 and at least 60 per cent by the first half of

2022. Second, insuring against downside risks such as new variants that may necessitate booster shots. Third, managing the interim period where vaccine supply is limited.