The COVID-19 epidemic, which has affected the whole world for about two years, has caused the loss of millions of lives. Although the effect of the pandemic has decreased in some regions with the vaccines developed so far, there is still a long way to go. This week, world leaders are meeting at the UN General Assembly to end the crisis phase of the pandemic.
Bill Gates, one of the founders of Microsoft, touched on 3 steps to end the pandemic in his personal blog. We have compiled this article for you…
The COVID-19 pandemic has slammed inequality in our face
We have reached the 18th month of the pandemic, while experiencing increased cases and deaths with the Delta variant. This global crisis was a disaster that took place in waves in every geography, affecting health, the economy and everything imaginable. But while the pandemic has been an experience for everyone, it has not been the same in every region.
(Photo: Mario Tama)
In the past year and a half, we have witnessed dozens of vaccine and drug studies and a tremendous collaboration has taken place. Also, healthcare workers around the world fought heroically. But we’ve also seen widening justice gaps. The COVID-19 pandemic has hit us with income inequality with the advent of vaccines.
We have seen that the uneven distribution of vaccines and the lack of funding and supply have caused the recovery from the pandemic to be unstable and erratic. In one report, researchers warned that global deaths would be higher if doses went predominantly to high-income countries. To date, less than 2 percent of people in low-income countries have received a dose of COVID-19 vaccine, compared to more than 60 percent of people in the United States.
Inequality is not limited here, either. Of course, the countries that lagged behind in vaccination are also unable to overcome difficulties in economic recovery. These countries can expect to experience a GDP loss of between 2 and 4 percent by 2025.
For Bill Gates, the way out of the pandemic is clear; equality. Because the world is global. Of course, there is no possibility that a crisis in low-income countries will not affect other countries.
Salvation from the pandemic: Vaccination
Let’s come to the three steps that Bill Gates sees as the outbreak of the pandemic. Governments and the private sector should work together to create a more transparent system to accelerate the global vaccine supply. While supply shortages were a major problem in the first half of the year, recently 41 million doses per day have been distributed worldwide. A positive development, but the road is long.
World Health Organization/Gavi-led COVAX AMC, African CDC-led African Vaccine Acquisition Task Force (AVATT), and other channels can carry vaccines. But they need more dose, visibility and enough money. It is clear what needs to be done to solve the logistics and financing problem. A global dashboard that provides real-time vaccine production and availability data will help here. Because it will serve to fill the access gaps of countries and global institutions.
It is necessary to contain the disease
In order to close the global capital gap, it is necessary to control the epidemics as they occur, as well as vaccination. The COVID-19 pandemic will only begin to disappear completely if we can overcome the disease.
The world needs rapid testing, a system for sharing genetic sequences, and various mechanisms to reduce the risk of variants jumping. We’ve seen this successfully with diseases like polio and malaria. In case of major outbreaks, we need expert support and response materials such as ready-to-use oxygen, PPE and life-saving medicines.
The private sector can play an important role, using its logistics expertise to shorten lead times and fill supply gaps.
How will the COVID-19 pandemic end? Coordinating the global response is essential
Bill Gates defined the third step as coordinating global interventions. The establishment of the Accelerator for Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT-A) in early 2020 marked a turning point. Governments, international organizations and the private sector came together.
(Photo: James Oatway)
All governments now need to appoint a global leader to report to the head of state. These reports will be collected regularly until 2021.
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