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Against Covid-19, “a safe and effective vaccine could be the only tool allowing a return of the world to a feeling of ‘normalcy’, estimated Wednesday the secretary general of the UNO, Antonio Guterres, hoping before the end of the year.
Such a vaccine “would save millions of lives and countless billions of dollars,” he added during a videoconference with some 50 African countries that are members of the organization. He pleaded for an acceleration of its development and its accessibility to all.
A “universal” vaccine
It must be “universal” and “allow the pandemic to be controlled”. “We need an ambitious effort to guarantee (…) a harmonized, integrated and optimized approach in order to maximize the speed and scale necessary for the universal deployment of such a vaccine by the end of 2020”, a he insisted.
Antonio Guterres said his appeal on March 25 for two billion dollars in donations for a vast UN humanitarian plan in response to the pandemic had so far raised “about 20%” of this amount. Thanks to the World Health Organization (WHO), the UN has been able to equip 47 African countries with tests for the Covid-19, he also praised.
The UN chief also praised the efforts of several African governments to mitigate the consequences of the pandemic, citing Uganda which has shifted a tax to support businesses, Namibia which offers emergency income to workers who have lost their jobs, Cape Verde which gives food aid or Egypt which reduced the taxation of industries.
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