The Multilateral Leaders Taskforce on COVID-19 (MLT) – comprising the heads of the International Monetary Fund, World Bank Group, World Health Organization and World Trade Organization – has met with the leaders of the African Vaccine Acquisition Trust (AVAT), Africa CDC, Gavi and UNICEF to tackle observable obstacles to rapidly scale-up vaccines in low- and lower middle-income countries, particularly in Africa.

At its third meeting, the Multilateral Leaders Taskforce in a statement said “The global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines is progressing at two alarmingly different speeds.

“Less than 2% of adults are fully vaccinated in most low-income countries compared to almost 50% in high‑income countries”, the statement said.

According to the Multilateral Leaders Taskforce on COVID-19, these countries, the majority of which are in Africa, simply cannot access sufficient vaccine to meet even the global goals of 10% coverage in all countries by September and 40% by end 2021, let alone the African Union’s goal of 70% in 2022.

“This crisis of vaccine inequity is driving a dangerous divergence in COVID-19 survival rates and in the global economy. We appreciate the important work of AVAT and COVAX to try and address this unacceptable situation.

“However, effectively tackling this acute vaccine supply shortage in low- and lower middle-income countries, and fully enabling AVAT and COVAX, requires the urgent cooperation of vaccine manufacturers, vaccine-producing countries, and countries that have already achieved high vaccination rates. To ensure all countries achieve the global goals of at least 10% coverage by September and 40% by end-2021:

“We call on countries that have contracted high volumes of vaccines to swap near-term delivery schedules with COVAX and AVAT.

“We call on vaccine manufacturers to immediately prioritize and fulfill their contracts to COVAX and AVAT, and to provide regular, clear supply forecasts.

“We urge G7 and all dose-sharing countries to fulfill their pledges urgently, with enhanced pipeline visibility, product shelf life and support for ancillary supplies, as barely 10% of nearly 900 million committed doses have so far been shipped.

“We call on all countries to eliminate export restrictions and any other trade barriers on COVID-19 vaccines and the inputs involved in their production.

“We are in parallel intensifying our work with COVAX and AVAT to tackle persistent vaccine delivery, manufacturing and trade issues, notably in Africa, and mobilize grants and concessional financing for these purposes. We will also explore financing mechanisms to cover future vaccine needs as requested by AVAT.

“We will advocate for better supply forecasts and investments to increase country preparedness and absorptive capacity. And we will continue to enhance our data, to identify gaps and improve transparency in the supply and use of all COVID-19 tools”.

The time for action, the Multilateral Leaders Taskforce said, is now as “the course of the pandemic—and the health of the world—are at stake.”

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