Antigua and Barbuda now wary of vaccine shortage

Antigua and Barbuda: Shortage of COVID19 jabs in Antigua and Barbuda might disrupt future plans of achieving herd immunity and opening back to tourism. The crisis is expected to be prolonged due to mutation in the virus. Just two weeks ago, the twin-island received 24,000 doses of Oxford Astra-Zeneca coronavirus vaccines from the COVAX facility. In March, it received 40,000 doses of vaccine from India, which the government shared with sister nations. The sum of vaccines is only enough to vaccinate about 25,000 persons of about 100,000 population. Additionally, new discoveries by Chief Medical Offer of BioNTech have shocked everyone as the statement read that people would likely need a third shot to add up to two shots of COVID19 vaccine as immunity against virus wanes. Another statement by big US Pharma stated that mRNA vaccines would be essential as people are likely to take vaccines every year due to changing strains of SARSCoV2. They have stated that new strains will be constantly discovered, requiring mRNA code updates to provide immunization against the virus.  The scarcity of vaccines across the world is worrying the governments as countries like India, the United States and most of the European countries are crippled by the second wave of COVID19. India, which initially pioneered vaccines supply to the world, is now suffering a major crisis as it recorded over 315,000 cases in past 24 hours. Big countries are struggling to fulfil their vaccination requirements. The tourism-dependent Caribbean region is also undergoing similar circumstances. The twin-island nation of Antigua and Barbuda would soon experience deficiency of COVID-19 vaccines. Even though it is a country of fewer than 100,000 people, it still requires to immunize 70% of its population to achieve herd immunity.The numbers of coronavirus cases are increasing rapidly in Antigua and Barbuda. Just a few days ago United States of America Embassy in Bridgetown, Barbados has cautioned Americans to avoid any travel to Antigua and Barbuda. The travel advisory has been shifted to level 4: referring to cases of COVID-19 very high.The travel advisory from the United States is likely to impact the tourism sector in the country. Being a tourism-based economy, Antigua and Barbuda cannot afford to be unsafe for tourists. Even cruise ships have indicated to berth vessels only if the vaccination drives are successful in host countries.

What should be done?

It is now necessary for all countries around the world to procure an abundance of vaccines to attain herd immunity. Antigua and Barbuda have been living on donations from India and COVAX to fulfil their vaccine requirements; however, the initial arrivals have not been sufficient enough to vaccinate 70% of the adult populations. The government needs to take more straightforward steps so that Antigua and Barbuda get sufficient supplies of vaccines. While countries like Argentina and Nigeria are striving to get vaccines and are ready to pay as much as $20 for a single dose, they can still not procure the vaccines for their broader populations.