Nations that hoard possible Covid-19 vaccines while excluding others will deepen the pandemic, World Health Organisation (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Tuesday, issuing a last-ditch call for countries to join a global vaccine pact. The WHO has an August 31 deadline for wealthier nations to join the “COVAX Global Vaccines Facility” for sharing vaccine hopefuls with developing countries. Tedros said he sent a letter to the WHO’s 194 member states, urging participation. The global health agency also raised concerns that the pandemic’s spread was being driven now by younger people, many of whom were unaware they were infected, posing a danger to vulnerable groups. Tedros’ push for nations to join COVAX comes as the European Union, Britain, Switzerland and the United States strike deals with companies testing prospective vaccines. Russia and China are also working on vaccines, and the WHO fears national interests could impede global efforts. “We need to prevent vaccine nationalism,” Tedros told a virtual briefing. “Sharing finite supplies strategically and globally is actually in each country’s national interest.” More than 21.9 million people have been reported to be infected by the novel coronavirus globally and 772,647 have died, according to a Reuters tally.
