Thread by @WHO

Media briefing on #COVID19 with @DrTedros pscp.tv/w/c9k3W3R3LTE0…

@DrTedros "In January of this year, a midwife from #Uganda called Harriet Nayiga joined our press conference to talk about her experience as a health worker during the #COVID19 pandemic"-@DrTedros

https://twitter.com/WHO/status/1355184862240628743?s=20

@DrTedros "While vaccines were being rolled out in the wealthiest countries, Harriet was one of many #healthworkers in Africa and around the 🌍 who was still waiting for her turn to be vaccinated. At the time, #Uganda – like much of Africa – had relatively few cases of #COVID19"-@DrTedros

@DrTedros "But starting in May of this year, #Uganda experienced a surge in cases and deaths, as variants tore through a largely unvaccinated population"-@DrTedros #COVID19

@DrTedros "This morning, Harriet sent us this email:

“I got my 1st shot & am yet to receive the 2nd. The situation was tough for the last two months, where over 2000 people died so far, including #healthworkers
...""-@DrTedros #COVID19

@DrTedros "...
“We hope that the 💉 will be able to reach different parts of 🇺🇬 & hope that people will be responsible enough & go for vaccination. Otherwise, #COVID19 is spreading though people are moving to work in order to earn a living since the majority depend on 🤚 to 👄 ""-@DrTedros

@DrTedros "This is the reality for hundreds of millions of people around the 🌍 – they cannot afford to stay at home. They work to eat. These populations need #COVID19 vaccines urgently, especially #healthworkers, older people & other vulnerable groups"-@DrTedros

https://twitter.com/WHO/status/1422908938765443076?s=20

@DrTedros "And yet even while hundreds of millions of people are still waiting for their first dose, some rich countries are moving towards booster doses"-@DrTedros #COVID19

https://twitter.com/WHO/status/1422909123839111173?s=20

@DrTedros "So far, more than 4 billion #COVID19 vaccine doses have been administered globally. More than 80% have gone to high- and upper-middle income countries, even though they account for less than half of the world’s population"-@DrTedros

@DrTedros "I understand the concern of all governments to protect their people from the Delta variant. But we cannot accept countries that have already used most of the global supply of vaccines using even more of it, while the 🌍’s most vulnerable people remain unprotected"-@DrTedros

@DrTedros "In late May, I called for global support for a “sprint to September”, to enable country to vaccinate at least 10% of its population by the end of September. We’re now more than halfway to that target date, but we’re not on track"-@DrTedros #VaccinEquity

https://twitter.com/DrTedros/status/1396903387732615172?s=20

@DrTedros "When I issued that challenge in May, high-income countries had administered around 50 doses for every 100 people. Since then, that number has doubled. High-income countries have now administered almost 100 doses for every 100 people"-@DrTedros

https://twitter.com/WHO/status/1422909764619603975?s=20

@DrTedros "Meanwhile, low-income countries have only been able to administer 1.5 💉 for every 100 people, due to lack of supply. We need an urgent reversal, from the majority of vaccines going to high-income countries, to the majority going to low-income countries"-@DrTedros #VaccinEquity

@DrTedros "Accordingly, WHO is calling for a moratorium on boosters until at least the end of September, to enable at least 10% of the population of every country to be vaccinated"-@DrTedros #COVID19 #VaccinEquity

https://twitter.com/WHO/status/1422910210704826377?s=20

@DrTedros "To make that happen, we need everyone’s cooperation, especially the handful of countries and companies that control the global supply of vaccines"-@DrTedros #COVID19 #VaccinEquity

https://twitter.com/WHO/status/1422910355823632391?s=20

@DrTedros "The @g20org has a vital leadership role to play, as the countries that are the biggest producers, the biggest consumers and the biggest donors of #COVID19 vaccines"-@DrTedros #VaccinEquity

https://twitter.com/WHO/status/1422910493166116865?s=20

@DrTedros @g20org "It’s no understatement to say that the course of the #COVID19 pandemic depends on the leadership of the @g20org"-@DrTedros #VaccinEquity

https://twitter.com/WHO/status/1422910625836150787?s=20

@DrTedros @g20org "One month from now, the @g20org health ministers will meet, ahead of the G20 summit in October. I call on them to make concrete commitments to support WHO’s global vaccination targets"-@DrTedros #VaccinEquity

https://twitter.com/WHO/status/1422910758648745987?s=20

@DrTedros @g20org "We call on vaccine producers to prioritize #COVAX"-@DrTedros #VaccinEquity

https://twitter.com/WHO/status/1422910493166116865?s=20

@DrTedros @g20org "We call on everyone with influence – #Olympics athletes, investors, business leaders, faith leaders, and every individual in their own family and community – to support our call for a moratorium on booster shots until at least the end of September"-@DrTedros #VaccinEquity

@DrTedros @g20org "We must all remember that vaccines are not the only tool. Indeed, there is no single tool that will defeat this pandemic. We can only defeat it with a comprehensive approach of 💉 in combination with the proven public health & social measures that we know work"-@DrTedros

@DrTedros @g20org The full remarks by @DrTedros at the #COVID19 media briefing - 4 August 2021 👇 bit.ly/3luAV1v