The United Nations Security Council called for more COVID-19 vaccines to be sent to Africa, warning that the continent risks severely lagging behind the rest of the world in terms of recovering from the pandemic as a result of lack of access to vaccines.
The council met on Wednesday, summoned by member-state China, and released a joint statement calling for “increased and accelerated donation of safe and effective vaccine doses from developed economies” to African countries that have been worst-hit by the virus.
Delegates “reiterated the need to enable equitable access to quality, safe, efficacious and affordable COVID-19 diagnostics, therapeutics, medicines and vaccines to all, including the most vulnerable,” it continued.
The U.N. secretary-general also delivered remarks at the meeting, warning that economic growth was slowing across the African continent while unrest has also occurred in some countries as a result of “harmful misinformation.”
“Out of 1.4 billion doses administered around the world today, only 24 million have reached Africa — less than 2 percent,” said U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres at the meeting.
“The severe impact of the pandemic on young people — especially in Africa, the youngest continent — is contributing to increased risks. Loss of opportunities for education, employment and income drive a sense of alienation, marginalization and mental health stress that can be exploited by criminals and extremists,” he continued.
Just over 4.7 million cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed across Africa, according to the Africa Centers for Disease Control. More than one-fourth of those infections are in hard-hit South Africa, which has confirmed more than 1.6 million cases within its borders.
The rate of new cases is once again climbing in South Africa, with local officials warning that the government is not doing enough to track infections.