Covid-19 vaccine should be accessible to all – Osinbajo

In order to effectively contain the spread of the Coronavirus disease across the globe, the deployment of the Covid-19 vaccine should be done in an equitable and affordable manner rather than on the basis of the highest bidder, according to Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo.

The Vice-President stated this at the virtual 2020 EURAFRICA Forum themed “Towards a realistic Euro-African partnership during and beyond the Covid-19 era”.

The summit featured presentation from notable global leaders including the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Mr Antonio Guterres, the Prime Minister of Cape Verde, Mr. Ulisses Correia Silva, among others speakers.

The EurAfrican Forum aims to foster stronger collaboration between Europe and Africa, and better promote a shared green and inclusive growth, among other objectives.

Speaking on the need for an equitable distribution of vaccines to contain the Covid-19 pandemic, Osinbajo said the first thing that comes to mind “is to ensure widespread and equitable access to a Covid-19 vaccine.”

According to him, “Europe should work closely with Africa to ensure that when a vaccine is finally deployed it should not be on the basis of the highest bidder but rather be made available at an affordable and in an accessible manner.

“This is a matter that should not be taken for granted. We saw during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, in richer parts of the world, that orders for test kits and reagents by African countries were deemed too small and tended to be ignored.”

Further stressing the point in support of Africa and developing countries in general, the Vice-President called on the European Union to support the initiatives aimed at promoting vaccine access to poorer countries.

He said “although Nigeria does not have the resources or means to pre-pay for a Covid-19 vaccine, we are fortunate to be a GAVI supported country and we urge the EU to lend support to GAVI’s effort to ensure equitable global access to Covid-19 vaccines under the COVAX initiative. This way, poorer countries and their citizens will get the vaccines that they need at the same time as the rest of the world.”

Emphasizing the need to review the state of partnership between Africa and Europe, the Vice-President said the summit offered an opportunity for both continents to share perspectives on matters of mutual interest.