Asked by
Birds of the sky (2 Golds)
Sunday, 30 Aug 2020, 03:46 AM
at (Consultancy
Business)
|
|
|
|
'Vaccine Nationalism'
============================ One of the most terrifying things in the early days of the pandemic was watching the richest and ostensibly most powerful countries in the world fumble their response through a combination of political malpractice and the effects of having let national institutions crumble for years. Current geopolitical trends suggest that breaking the tit-for-tat between two superpowers and the race for a vaccine would be practically impossible.When Russia announced with sanguine voice that it would be the first country to approve one namely "Sputnik V", nobody rejoiced. Scientists pointed out clinical testing wasn’t complete, the vaccine had been tested on fewer than 100 people. Anthony Fauci, director of the US National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said he had “serious doubts” it would work. Developing the first effective vaccine would certainly help China to encounter criticism due to the coronavirus outbreak; it will also enhance national pride. But not all countries have the means to make those investments. This is self-interest, a nationalistic approach that is limited and shortsighted. Because nobody is safe unless everybody’s safe.' “The argument we are making is that the virus is everywhere in the world and it would be impossible for the world to go back to normal, and for the economy to recover if only pockets of people are protected...” It would be easier if the US and China could get together on this and coordinate efforts, especially if they could do it through the WHO. Many of the world’s scientists are already doing this whereas governments aren’t. We need to make sure that this spirit of global solidarity and this principle of vaccines as a public good is put at the heart of the political agenda on Covid-19. A universal social contract for a people’s vaccine against Covid-19 is a moral imperative that brings all of us together.It is not just an ethical and humanitarian matter, but also economic and strategic, as global recovery requires a collective effort. Collected from Facebook Answered by Birds of the sky (2 Golds) Sunday, 30 Aug 2020, 03:47 AM |