The gap between the rich and poor countries is getting wider across the globe as reports have it that some rich nations are hoarding COVID – 19 vaccines. In as much as I am an advocate of collaborative efforts in the international environment, one cannot blame those who have produced vaccines for catering first to the vaccination needs of their people.
We have seen that rich countries have access to coronavirus vaccines earlier than others. This was confirmed by a university researcher at Duke University, North Carolina that, “High – income countries have about 16 percent of the world’s population but currently hold 60 percent of the vaccination doses that have been purchased.” As the coronavirus continues to spread at an alarming rate around the world with the new dangerous variants picking up pace, the vaccination campaign in almost all the world’s poorest countries haven’t even begun.
As at 29 Jan 2021, more than 80 million COVID – 19 vaccines doses have been distributed around the world, but only 55 doses in a low-income country. That low-income country is Guinea. So, with 55 doses of vaccines in Guinea, can one say that real vaccination has started in the country? Rich countries particularly are storing up doses more than necessary. And in doing so, countries that are hoarding these vaccines are unexpectedly increasing the chances of a long – term crisis.
A long–term crisis in which COVID–19 outbreaks and mutations could rise for years in developing countries where herd immunity won’t be soon reached. Some African countries may not receive enough COVID–19 vaccine doses to reach herd immunity for years, according to reports by a World Health Organization (WHO) initiative to coordinate vaccine rollout. What is herd immunity? It is “resistance to the spread of an infectious disease within a population that is based on pre-existing immunity of a high proportion of individuals as a result of previous infection or vaccination.”
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There are speculations that vaccinations are not likely to begin in Africa until mid – 2021, according to the Africa Centre for Disease Control and Prevention. It could take years to secure the doses needed to immunize 60 percent of the continent’s 1.3 billion people. That is the threshold at which herd immunity may be achieved, according to medical experts.
Vaccination exercises are going on smoothly in some countries: About a week ago for instance, Israel had vaccinated more than 30 percent of its population that requires the first dose, according to a vaccination tracker. The UAE, UK, USA, Bahrain, Spain, Poland, Germany and many countries have injected millions of their citizens. In Africa, Mauritius, Egypt, Seychelles, South Africa, Morocco and Algeria have started vaccinating their people. What is Nigeria doing to vaccinate its own people? I am yet to see any concrete plan about COVID–19 vaccination in Nigeria.
From statistics, we observed that as of January 31, 2021, Nigeria has recorded 131,242 COVID-19 confirmed cases with 104,989 discharged and 1,586 deaths. However, only 1,302,410 samples have been tested out of the 200 million population. This shows that less than one percent of the population has been tested.
As the international community is speeding up vaccination against the deadly coronavirus, what is Nigeria actually doing? Although, it is unconfirmed, I heard that the Nigeria’s Governors Forum has planned to get 140 million doses of vaccines in two years. But no vaccination has taken place in the country. We have seen a few wealthy Nigerians travel abroad to get vaccinated, whilst those who cannot afford travelling abroad for vaccination are waiting patiently for the vaccines.
In fact, the concern of this columnist is the poor Nigerians. Certainly, poor Nigerians who barely live on US$ 1.9/ daily cannot travel abroad for vaccination against coronavirus. This category consists of about 100 million Nigerians. And as medical experts say that vaccination is the ultimate exit from the pandemic, one would have expected those in authority to make available their strategic plan for vaccination from the federal to the local government levels. As I write this article, no concrete plan has been rolled out by those in authority, about how and when the vaccination will take place. All we know is that the government has said that it would vaccinate 40 percent of the country’s over 200 million population by the end of the year 2021.
One may argue by referring to reports that Nigeria and the rest of Africa are to start getting vaccines from COVAX at the end of February 2021. The global program strives to ensure that there is equitable access to COVID–19 vaccines and thus, millions doses of vaccines have been allocated to African countries. It is worthy to note that Nigeria the most populous country in Africa is expected to receive 16 million, while Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) are to receive 9 million and 7 million doses respectively, according to reports.
No concrete plan has been rolled out by those in authority, about how and when the vaccination will take place
However, it is unclear if Nigeria and others have adequate arrangements for vaccine reception and distribution. Apart from Ekiti State that declares it has devices to store the vaccines and Kaduna State that has acquired drones to distribute the vaccines, I do not know what other states have for vaccine reception and distribution. Above all, what is our national strategy towards producing our own vaccine?
As we wait for vaccines, it is worthy to note that COVAX vaccine supply plan are non–binding and could change due to manufacturing and operational constraints. Or, lack of preparedness by individual countries, according to medical experts. So what do we do in the interim? In answering this question, a renowned virologist, Prof Oyewole Tomori was quoted by the media as saying that the federal government should use persuasion not regulations for people to adhere to the COVID–19 safety measures.
“Whenever we have crisis, it has been resolved through persuasion and not through regulations….,” according to the erudite professor. He is of the view that people should be persuaded to cover their noses and mouths with masks. “Now we must shift focus to the people. After all, COVID–19 virus is made mobile by the people and it kills people not the government. Now the government must go back to appeal and appease the people for past errors made.”
My take on this matter is that equity should not be sacrificed for speed as the government plans for COVID–19 vaccination. State governors and local government chairmen should distribute vaccines with an “equity lens.” I think Nigerians are interested in the vaccination plan because no one wants their communities to be overlooked. If communities are overlooked, it would be very disappointing.
High–risk individuals such as healthcare workers, teachers, senior citizens, food and farm workers and those infected by the virus should be in the first line for the shots. Those low–income individuals living mostly in rural areas should not be forgotten. We need to address equity concerns as we plan to vaccinate our people. Thank you.
