On Wednesday, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on the G20 to put in place a “global vaccination plan” to leave no one behind in the fight against the Covid-19 epidemic, during a ministerial session of the Security Council.
Also read: All epidemic developments
He said, “The world is in dire need of a global immunization plan that brings together everyone who has the strength, scientific and productive expertise, and the required financial capabilities.”
The Secretary-General added, “I believe that the G20 (which includes the twenty most powerful economies on the planet) is in a good position to establish an emergency working group responsible for preparing the global immunization plan and coordinating its implementation and financing.”
“This working group should include all countries in which there is capacity to develop or produce vaccines if licenses are available, as well as the World Health Organization, other technical organizations and the relevant international financial institutions,” he said.
Among the fifteen members of the Security Council are the largest producers of vaccines: the United States, Russia, China, the United Kingdom and India.
According to Antonio Guterres, the G7 summit, chaired by Britain, to be held on Friday, “can create the necessary momentum to mobilize the necessary financial resources.”
And he warned that “if we let the virus spread like wildfire in the countries of the South, it will mutate over and over again” with “new variants that are more transmissible and more deadly that are likely to threaten the effectiveness of vaccines.” The Secretary-General insisted that “this could significantly prolong the epidemic, allowing the virus to return to devastate the north.”
And he demanded that “we must ensure that everyone everywhere can be vaccinated as quickly as possible,” denouncing “the progress in vaccination that is unequal and extremely unfair.” “Only ten countries have given 75% of all COVID-19 vaccines. Meanwhile, more than 130 countries have not received a single dose.”
Organized by the United Kingdom, the current chair of the Security Council in February, the ministerial session brings together several heads of diplomacy. British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has emphasized that the world is “fighting a global pandemic”. He stressed that “we must not be left behind.”
“Food trailblazer. Passionate troublemaker. Coffee fanatic. General analyst. Certified creator. Lifelong music expert. Alcohol specialist.”