প্রকাশ: 20/01/2022
The Covax scheme for ensuring Covid-19 vaccines reach poorer
countries said Wednesday it needed $5.2 billion within the next three months to
fund jabs for the world in 2022.
Covax reached the milestone of shipping its billionth
vaccine dose at the weekend, after a surge in deliveries to countries in
November and December, but hopes to ramp up the flow of vaccines this year.
"In 2022, we can help break Covid by adapting our
support to ensure doses are used rapidly, get into arms safely, are responsive
to country preferences and coverage targets," said Gavi vaccine alliance
chief Seth Berkley.
"This will help the world to reduce pandemic risks and
uncertainties."
Gavi, along with the World Health Organization (WHO), is one
of the co-leaders of the Covax scheme.
Covax wants $3.7 billion (3.26 billion euros) to fund a pool
of 600 million doses, to ensure a reliable supply to the poorest countries, and
cover eventual variables such as boosters or new variant vaccines.
A further $1 billion would go towards supporting readiness
and delivery in poorer nations, and $545 million to cover the costs for rolling
out donated doses, such as syringes, transportation and insurance.
The appeal has received $192 million so far from donors.
Berkley expects the next billion doses to take four to five
months to deliver, rather than a year for the first billion.
Covax says it has enough confirmed supplies to vaccinate
around 45 percent of the population in the 92 countries that receive
donor-funded doses.
However, up to 25 of those nations are lagging behind in
installing the capacity to get doses from airports into arms.
Covax reckons that it could save more than a million lives
in 2022, and halve the economic cost of the pandemic in some countries, with a
rapid roll-out.
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that while nearly
10 billion doses have been administered so far, approaching half the world's
population is completely unvaccinated.
He said the imbalance had led to new variants such as
Omicron emerging, and "the next one could well be worse".
"In 2022 we can end the acute phase of the pandemic or
prolong it. World leaders have a choice."
প্রধান সম্পাদকঃ সৈয়দ বোরহান কবীর
ক্রিয়েটিভ মিডিয়া লিমিটেডের অঙ্গ প্রতিষ্ঠান
বার্তা এবং বাণিজ্যিক কার্যালয়ঃ ২/৩ , ব্লক - ডি , লালমাটিয়া , ঢাকা -১২০৭
নিবন্ধিত ঠিকানাঃ বাড়ি# ৪৩ (লেভেল-৫) , রোড#১৬ নতুন (পুরাতন ২৭) , ধানমন্ডি , ঢাকা- ১২০৯
ফোনঃ +৮৮-০২৯১২৩৬৭৭