THE UK is not doing enough to support the rollout of Covid-19 vaccines in the global South, new analysis by the global think tank the ODI (Overseas Development Institute) has found.
The Covid Vaccine Equity Index, endorsed by the People’s Vaccine Alliance, was commissioned in response to an increasing gap between vaccination rates in the Global South and in rich countries.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), six adults are receiving their booster shots in middle- and high-income countries for every one adult in a low-income country who is receiving their first course of a vaccine.
The ODI research ranks countries in the G20 in three areas: how much they are financing vaccines globally; how far their procurement of vaccines has helped global distribution; and whether they are supportive of reforms to trade and manufacturing policies which could unlock a fairer supply globally. This includes the waiver of intellectual property which would allow vaccine producers in the global South to manufacture without fear of legal repercussions.
South Africa is ranked top of the table, according to the analysis, but still falls short of what Christian Aid and the People’s Vaccine Alliance expect governments to do to support vaccine equity. The UK is 17th of the G20 countries.
Christian Aid’s interim chief executive, Patrick Watt, called on the UK Government to take action. He said: “It is not promises that people need, it is vaccines.”
The failure to roll out vaccines globally was destroying lives and slowing economic recovery, he said. “It doesn’t need to be this way, but as shown by our comprehensive index, no one rich country is doing nearly enough to promote global vaccine equity, and certainly not the United Kingdom.
“The best way to reduce the risk of vaccine-resistant variants is by ensuring universal access to vaccines. However, a lack of leadership has created a world of ‘have jabs and have nots’.
“Rich countries have an obligation to remove the barriers preventing the rapid rollout of vaccines in the global South. That means urgently waiving patents, which the UK has shamefully opposed; priority for health care; and a debt-cancellation package.
It is not promises that people need: it is vaccines. We must act on these lessons in real time in order to recover from the pandemic.”
Gordon Brown, the former Prime Minister and WHO Ambassador for Global Health Financing, said that Christian Aid’s index was a reminder that greater strides must be taken to finance the vaccination of the whole world. “The challenge to richer countries, including the UK, is to finance the vaccinations, testing, and medical equipment needed in low-income countries. It is a challenge we must rise to.”