Cuban Foreign Minister Raises Concerns About Unfair Distribution Of COVID-19 Vaccines

MEXICO CITY (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 19th January, 2021) A total of 95 percent of the produced vaccines against the coronavirus were purchased by only 10 countries, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla said, raising concerns about how to ensure access to vaccination in poor countries.

"According to the World Health Organization, only 10 countries have purchased 95 percent of the produced COVID-19 vaccines. How can equal access to immunization be guaranteed in southern countries? How can poor and vulnerable families be vaccinated? How long will that take?" the minister wrote on Twitter late on Monday.

Earlier in January, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus slammed high-income countries for scooping up COVID-19 vaccines and called for their equitable distribution. According to Tedros, the WHO's vaccine distribution mechanism, COVAX, secured contracts for 2 billion doses of vaccines, but better-off countries were draining vaccine supplies by making additional bilateral deals. He urged countries that contracted more vaccines that they would need to donate and release them to COVAX immediately.