The WHO and the UN have determined the steps to achieve the global goals of vaccination against COVID

• Working with COVAX, the African Vaccine Fund and other partners, the world can and must meet the WHO targets of vaccinating 40% of the population in all countries by the end of 2021 and 70% by mid-2022.
• Gaps in COVAX vaccine supply must be closed immediately for countries to reach the 40% target by the end of the year
• The Secretary-General of the United Nations and the Director-General of the WHO call on countries and producers to fulfill their obligations without further delay.

The World Health Organization launched today Strategy to achieve global vaccination against Covid-19 by mid-2022 (Strategy) to end what has become a two-lane pandemic: people in poorer countries remain at risk, while those in richer countries with high vaccination rates enjoy much greater protection.

The WHO has set a goal of vaccinating 10% of each country, economy and territory by the end of September, but by that date 56 countries could not do so, the vast majority being African and Middle Eastern countries.

The new strategy outlines a plan to achieve the WHO goals of vaccinating 40% of each country’s population by the end of this year and 70% by mid-2022.

“Science has played its part by delivering powerful life-saving tools faster than for any epidemic in history,” said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “But the concentration of these tools in the hands of several countries and companies has led to a global catastrophe, where the rich are protected and the poor are still exposed to the deadly virus. We can still achieve the goals for this and next year, but it will require a level of political commitment, action and cooperation, above what we have seen so far. ”

“This is an expensive, coordinated and credible way out of the COVID-19 pandemic for everyone and everywhere,” said United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. “Without a coordinated, fair approach, the reduction in the number of cases in any country will not be sustained over time. For the benefit of all, we urgently need to bring all countries to a high level of vaccination coverage. ”

In order to achieve the global vaccination goals, there should be a three-step approach to vaccination, with all older adults, health professionals and high-risk groups of all ages, in each country vaccinated first, followed by the full adult age group in each country and eventually prolonged vaccination of adolescents.

At least 11 billion doses of vaccine are needed to vaccinate 70% of the world’s population. By the end of September, just over 6 billion doses had been administered worldwide. With global vaccine production now amounting to almost 1.5 billion doses per month, there are enough vaccines from a supply perspective to achieve global vaccination targets provided there is an equal distribution of those doses.

Substantial funding has already been invested to procure most of the required doses of vaccine for low- and lower-middle-income countries through COVAX, the African Vaccine Acquisition Fund (AVAT) and bilateral agreements. Additional investments are needed to ensure the remaining doses of vaccine for these countries, as well as investments to support delivery in the country.

The strategy outlines the priority actions of different actors to achieve the goals.

All countries must:

• Establish updated national targets and vaccine plans against COVID-19 that define dose requirements to guide investment in vaccine production and redistribution, and financial and programmatic resource needs to guide internal planning and external support;
• Carefully monitor vaccine demand and intake to quickly adjust services and ensure continuity of vaccine supply;
• Commit to an even distribution of vaccines in accordance with the WHO approach in three steps;
• Revise national vaccination strategies, policies and priorities as needed to gather new evidence to maximize the impact of existing, modified and new vaccines.

Countries with high vaccine coverage must:

• Replace the vaccine delivery schedule, with COVAX and AVAT, to increase coverage in countries in need;
• Execute and accelerate the distribution of vaccine doses and donation commitments for COVAX in the near future, for those with existing promises;
• Establish new dose-sharing commitments to facilitate progress towards the 70% coverage target in each country.

Vaccine-producing countries must:

• Allow free cross-border flow of finished vaccines and raw materials;
• Enable diversified vaccine production, geographically and technologically, including through non-exclusive and transparent licensing and knowledge sharing to enable technology transfer and increase production.

Manufacturers of COVID-19 vaccines must:

• Prioritize and fulfill COVAX and AVAT contracts as a matter of urgency;
• Provide full transparency on the total monthly production of COVID-19 vaccines and clear monthly supply schedules for COVAX, AVAT and low- and low- and middle-income countries, to allow for proper global and national planning and optimal use of scarce stocks ;
• Actively engage and work with countries that have high coverage and have contracted large quantities of vaccines to enable priority to be given to COVAX and AVAT contracts, including switching delivery schedules, and to facilitate rapid and early dose sharing;
• Commit to sharing knowledge faster, facilitating technology transfer and ensuring transparent non-exclusive voluntary licenses, to ensure that future vaccine supplies are reliable, affordable, accessible and distributed in each country in quantities and times that allow equal access.

Civil society, community organizations and the private sector must:

• Advocate locally, nationally and internationally for equal access to vaccines, tests and medicines against COVID-19, calling for and monitoring in particular the specific actions required of manufacturers, governments and multilateral actors;
• Mobilize and empower communities, including through social media and community networks, to create high demand for vaccines and address misinformation and misconceptions that contribute to vaccine indecision;
• Support the provision of vaccination programs and services in the country.

Global and regional multilateral development banks and institutions must:

• Provide countries with faster access to the capital and external support needed to deliver vaccines in the country, giving priority to low-income environments, and in particular targeting support to the necessary technical, logistical and human resources;
• Get fully involved with COVAX / ACT-Accelerator and AVAT, with integrated operations and real-time information exchange to truly support fair access;
• Support international procurement and distribution mechanisms to enable all countries to achieve the objectives of the COVID-19 vaccine equally, effectively and rapidly;
• Support vaccine distribution plans and the campaign to transfer vital approved vaccinations against COVID-19.