The fight against vaccine inequity
The Omicron variant is currently threatening the world with a potential new wave of COVID-19. It comes on the backdrop of extreme pandemic fatigue and the start of Canadian winter. Nobody wants to go back to lockdown.
While variants will occur no matter what we do and not all variants are necessarily more dangerous, some of them can pose new threats. And the best way to slow down their appearance is vaccination.
There could be, and likely is, a direct link between the rise of variants and the low vaccination rate in some parts of the world. In most rich countries, vaccination rates are around 60 to 80 per cent. Across the African continent, they are at seven per cent. Even in South Africa, which has relatively more resources, it is only 24 per cent.
COVAX was meant to help countries that could not purchase vaccines at standard market price. Instead, wealthy countries jumped the line and purchased most of the world’s vaccines. They currently sit on abundant quantities, struggling with vaccine resistance.
While rich countries are trying desperately to convince their privileged, hesitating citizens to get vaccinated, poor countries are grappling with shortage of desired life-saving vaccines. While rich countries are rolling out a third dose, citizens of poor countries are unable to get even a single one.
This global inequity is ethically despicable but also dangerous from a public health perspective. Throughout the pandemic, we repeated the mantra “nobody is safe until everyone is safe,” but we did not act responsibly. The current situation must change. Fast.
So what should we do? Rich countries must urgently continue to donate vaccine doses and money to fulfil their promises. Canada, for example, promised to donate 50 million doses (and the equivalent of 200 million by the end of 2022), but to date only donated 8 million. Moreover, the capacity to produce vaccines locally in low-resource countries should be enhanced, and for that intellectual property barriers need to be removed.
But this is also the time to learn the lessons of COVID-19 for the next global pandemic.
Future pandemic preparedness is the topic of the current meeting of the World Health Assembly, the decision-making body of the WHO. In preparation for this critically important meeting, African health ministers, researchers and organizations led the development of an open letter, in which they propose key principles for doing better next time.
They call on all countries with excess vaccine doses to immediately donate them. They call on all recipients to commit to an equitable and fair distribution of vaccines within their countries. They call for greater participation of African nations in vaccine research, and urge pharmaceutical companies to set up production facilities in Africa.
They ask the WHO to set up an international, independent, publicly funded permanent successor to COVAX, that would purchase and distribute treatments and vaccines in the event of a future pandemic. The goal would be to vaccinate 70 per cent of the world’s population within the first year.
To accomplish this, they call for the creation of a pandemic insurance fund. They ask all G20 nations to donate collectively 0.1 per cent of their GDP — or $10 billion per year. This is a fraction of the nearly 3 trillion dollars lost in GDP due to COVID so far. Such a fund would set the world well in advance, so countries will not have to scramble for vaccines during a global emergency.
Considering how often African needs are ignored, it is critical to ensure African voices are well represented. We owe it to low- and middle- income countries to be mindful of the needs of the Global South. But the creation of such a pandemic insurance fund would benefit rich countries as well. When it comes to pandemic preparedness, humanitarianism is practical.
As we witness the rise of the Omicron variant, we must see low- and middle-income nations as partners in combating a common enemy. The Canadian delegation at the World Health Assembly should support a vote on these principles of vaccine equity.
Future generations will judge us based on our current action, or inaction. Canada, with its proud commitment to equality, solidarity, and human rights, needs to do what it takes now to be on the right side of history.
‘‘ While rich countries are trying desperately to convince their privileged, hesitating citizens to get vaccinated, poor countries are grappling with shortage of desired life-saving vaccines.
VARDIT RAVITSKY