
People in Nairobi, Kenya wait in line to receive vaccine doses against Covid-19 on April 12, 2021. (Photo: Robert Bonet/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
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People in Nairobi, Kenya wait in line to receive vaccine doses against Covid-19 on April 12, 2021. (Photo: Robert Bonet/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
As athletes from around the world prepare to compete in the Olympics in Tokyo--without any in-person spectators due to the coronavirus pandemic, more than a year after the crisis began and despite the availability of effective vaccines--advocacy groups on Wednesday called on world leaders to "stop playing games" and end the apartheid that's keeping the Global South from accessing vaccine doses.
The People's Vaccine Alliance and Public Citizen launched their new Stop Playing Games campaign to demand that leaders of wealthy countries, 33 of which have vaccinated at least 50% of their populations, invest in a global vaccine manufacturing plan to produce and distribute doses at a faster rate in regional hubs around the world.
"This crisis is the direct result of political decisions by leaders of wealthy nations, who hoard vaccines and booster shots while billions of people wait, potentially for years, for their first dose."
--Campaign leaders
As of now, only 1% of people in low-income countries have received at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine. Last month, Oxfam reported that at the current rate, it would take 57 years for every person in the Global South to be fully vaccinated against the disease.
The campaign was launched as Pfizer announced it would begin manufacturing vaccines under license via a manufacturer in South Africa in order to produce 100 million doses for people in African countries. With countries including South Africa and Kenya experiencing surges in Covid-19 cases, Oxfam America and the People's Vaccine Alliance said the pledge was "simply not enough."
"Charity and largely symbolic measures by corporations will not deliver vaccines for everyone, everywhere," Silverman added.
\u201cbe clear: South Africa @WHO @AfricaCDC asked for mRNA tech sharing so they could make #COVID19 vax to serve African continent. @pfizer @BioNTech_Group in cyclical, neocolonial move will \u201callow\u201d Biovac to fill & finish but refuses to share tech to make them\nhttps://t.co/m9BOCjx4Uz\u201d— Matthew Kavanagh (@Matthew Kavanagh) 1626872234
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As athletes from around the world prepare to compete in the Olympics in Tokyo--without any in-person spectators due to the coronavirus pandemic, more than a year after the crisis began and despite the availability of effective vaccines--advocacy groups on Wednesday called on world leaders to "stop playing games" and end the apartheid that's keeping the Global South from accessing vaccine doses.
The People's Vaccine Alliance and Public Citizen launched their new Stop Playing Games campaign to demand that leaders of wealthy countries, 33 of which have vaccinated at least 50% of their populations, invest in a global vaccine manufacturing plan to produce and distribute doses at a faster rate in regional hubs around the world.
"This crisis is the direct result of political decisions by leaders of wealthy nations, who hoard vaccines and booster shots while billions of people wait, potentially for years, for their first dose."
--Campaign leaders
As of now, only 1% of people in low-income countries have received at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine. Last month, Oxfam reported that at the current rate, it would take 57 years for every person in the Global South to be fully vaccinated against the disease.
The campaign was launched as Pfizer announced it would begin manufacturing vaccines under license via a manufacturer in South Africa in order to produce 100 million doses for people in African countries. With countries including South Africa and Kenya experiencing surges in Covid-19 cases, Oxfam America and the People's Vaccine Alliance said the pledge was "simply not enough."
"Charity and largely symbolic measures by corporations will not deliver vaccines for everyone, everywhere," Silverman added.
\u201cbe clear: South Africa @WHO @AfricaCDC asked for mRNA tech sharing so they could make #COVID19 vax to serve African continent. @pfizer @BioNTech_Group in cyclical, neocolonial move will \u201callow\u201d Biovac to fill & finish but refuses to share tech to make them\nhttps://t.co/m9BOCjx4Uz\u201d— Matthew Kavanagh (@Matthew Kavanagh) 1626872234
As athletes from around the world prepare to compete in the Olympics in Tokyo--without any in-person spectators due to the coronavirus pandemic, more than a year after the crisis began and despite the availability of effective vaccines--advocacy groups on Wednesday called on world leaders to "stop playing games" and end the apartheid that's keeping the Global South from accessing vaccine doses.
The People's Vaccine Alliance and Public Citizen launched their new Stop Playing Games campaign to demand that leaders of wealthy countries, 33 of which have vaccinated at least 50% of their populations, invest in a global vaccine manufacturing plan to produce and distribute doses at a faster rate in regional hubs around the world.
"This crisis is the direct result of political decisions by leaders of wealthy nations, who hoard vaccines and booster shots while billions of people wait, potentially for years, for their first dose."
--Campaign leaders
As of now, only 1% of people in low-income countries have received at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine. Last month, Oxfam reported that at the current rate, it would take 57 years for every person in the Global South to be fully vaccinated against the disease.
The campaign was launched as Pfizer announced it would begin manufacturing vaccines under license via a manufacturer in South Africa in order to produce 100 million doses for people in African countries. With countries including South Africa and Kenya experiencing surges in Covid-19 cases, Oxfam America and the People's Vaccine Alliance said the pledge was "simply not enough."
"Charity and largely symbolic measures by corporations will not deliver vaccines for everyone, everywhere," Silverman added.
\u201cbe clear: South Africa @WHO @AfricaCDC asked for mRNA tech sharing so they could make #COVID19 vax to serve African continent. @pfizer @BioNTech_Group in cyclical, neocolonial move will \u201callow\u201d Biovac to fill & finish but refuses to share tech to make them\nhttps://t.co/m9BOCjx4Uz\u201d— Matthew Kavanagh (@Matthew Kavanagh) 1626872234