The EU, UK, US, and others have for months been blocking wider vaccine production globally by obstructing the #TRIPSwaiver at the World Trade Organization.
They are trying to fight a global pandemic while deliberately limiting vaccine supplies.
Madness.
Only 2.7% of the world is fully vaccinated;
83% of shots administered in high- & upper-middle-income countries;
Only 0.2% in low-income ones.
Too slow. Too uneven.
We need to beat vaccine scarcity with greater production.
Even before the vast majority of the world has received a single jab, the pharma companies & rich governments are saying we will likely need boosters & new vaccines to meet emerging new variants that are resistant to current vaccines: cnbc.com/2021/04/15/pfi…
2 consequences…
First, if 3rd-shot boosters of the current vaccine become necessary, it will mean that the "vaccine nationalism" of rich countries fighting each other for scarce doses will continue...
...and most countries of the world will continue to get nothing or not enough.
The COVAX facility may help get 20% of some poorer countries' doses, but that's not nearly herd immunity level (thought to be 70% at least). Plus, more money doesn't help if there are no doses to buy because of the enforced scarcity.
Second, just step back & think about it: where would these new variants emerge? Most likely in the bodies of those of us who haven't been vaccinated because we can't get vaccines - that is, the vast majority of the world.
"At this rate, it might take many years for low- & middle-income countries to reach a high level of vaccine coverage. Without widespread vaccination, many more people will die & the world simply cannot end this global crisis." naturemicrobiologycommunity.nature.com/posts/10-reaso…
The EU, US, Canada, Australia, Switzerland, Japan, and several other governments have pledged and donated billions to COVAX. This is, of course, welcome news. The money will will subsidise the vaccine bills for 92 low-income governments.
EU foreign policy chief Borrell tweeted support for waiving some intellectual property rules to scale up vaccine production globally.
Then someone at EU message control must've told him that EU policy is to block that waiver & wider production, so he deleted it
So, there are smart EU decision makers who understand the problem of vaccine scarcity & the need to ramp up production worldwide through the #TRIPSwaiver.
Sadly, other EU decision makers - those who want to boost pharma profits & have a longer pandemic - are on top right now.
Here's the link that EU foreign policy chief Borrell tweeted & then deleted: it's a call for a #PeoplesVaccine from scores of former presidents & prime ministers, and Nobel laureates.
This is the link that EU message control doesn't want you to see.