WHO asks countries to donate COVID-19 vaccines as supply struggles

On Friday, the World Health Organization called on countries to donate COVID-19 vaccine doses to vaccinate the most vulnerable in 20 more impoverished countries.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the COVAX program, co-hosted with the GAVI vaccine alliance, immediately needed 10 million doses to vaccinate health workers and the elderly as a stop-gap measure.

'COVAX is ready to deliver, but we can not deliver vaccines that we do not have. "Bilateral transactions, export bans, vaccine nationalism and vaccine diplomacy have caused distortions in the market with gross inequalities in supply and demand," Tedros told a news conference.

"Ten million doses are not much, and it is not nearly enough," he said.

India, the world's largest vaccine manufacturer, said that it would make domestic vaccinations a priority on Friday. The move will hit COVAX stocks, as some of the AstraZeneca vaccines are manufactured by the Serum Institute of India.

Tedros thanks India for its exports so far and says the move is "understandable" given increasing infections. He added that talks with India are underway to find a balance between local and international needs.

So far, COVAX has delivered 32 million vaccine doses to 61 countries, but 36 countries are still waiting for vaccines to begin vaccinations, he said.

Tedros said countries need to work together to ensure COVID-19 vaccinations worldwide begin within the first 100 days of 2021 or by 10 April.

WHO senior adviser Bruce Aylward said talks were underway with well-provided countries on donations and that some had expressed 'positive interest' without mentioning it.

Meanwhile, a long-awaited report on the origin of the new coronavirus after a WHO team trip to Wuhan, China in January and February, will be released in the next few days, team leader Peter Ben Embarek said. WHO member states will only receive it before it is announced, he said.