As of March 2021, the United Kingdom has vaccinated approximately 21 million persons. The United States has vaccinated upwards of 76 million persons. China has administered around 40 million vaccines. The end is finally near.
Or it is for some.
Comparatively, Trinidad and Tobago has distributed 440 vaccines. Likewise the roll out in Guyana consisted 1800 vaccines. And no data is available for Jamaica as yet since their roll out hasn’t even begun. Now you may be thinking these are random countries to compare in this mini representation of data, but there is a pattern. Countries like the United States and the United Kingdom imposed monopolies on COVID-19 vaccines before they were even approved. Therefore they have received the bulk of the first batches. In addition many wealthier big 8 countries were able to purchase bulk orders of vaccines, more than covering the populations of their countries. Meanwhile many developing nations did not have the resources to make such large purchases or have the facilities to test vaccines before WHO approval and roll out. Thus many are scrambling to get any vaccines they can, and not nearly enough to create immunity in their societies.
In addition, instances of capitalism and outright greed in vaccine production have been noticed, also bringing to light many atrocities within the pharmaceutical industry. Many believe that the solution to end vaccine inequity would be a waiver on the patents withholding information regarding reproducing these life-saving vaccines. However, companies such as AstraZeneca, Pfizer and Moderna have gone against WHO and WTO advisories and applied patents to their vaccines, making it impossible for vaccine equity. High-income countries such as the US and the UK believe that the monetary gain will be a motivator for innovation of vaccines, and taking this away could delay or hinder vaccine production, as reported by Al-Jazeera. However as people continue to die daily, worldwide from this virus, I wonder what more motivation can one need? Likewise, the WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus asks “If not now, when?”.
Moreover, Israel has since rolled out over 8 million vaccines, covering the majority of their “population”. However Palestinians remain unvaccinated. Herd immunity of obtained when the majority of a population is vaccinated or provided with some type of immunity to a virus, preventing spread and eventually protecting those who are unable to be vaccinated also. Therefore, by ignoring groups in the society due to xenophobia and potentially attempted genocide, herd immunity can never be achieved effectively. Palestinians remain unvaccinated allows the virus to continue spreading, infecting those with and without vaccines in both Israel and Palestine.
To make matters even worse, anti-vaxxers in the developed world are beginning to refuse vaccines, leaving their wanton stocks to sit and expire before they can be administered. Despite the successes the United States has had with their vaccine roll out, only about half of American adults are willing to get the COVID-19 vaccine according to CNBC. Other countries such as Germany are reporting that at least 30% of the population is starkly anti-vaccination, specifically anti-COVID-19 vaccinations hindering the possibility of herd immunity.
In a global society attempting to regain access to travel, a global herd immunity is essential. For international travel to resume with the frequency with which it occurred prior to the pandemic, persons travelling must be ensured that they are not carrying the virus, neither are they travelling to a country that has an outbreak of the virus. The only way to ensure this is through vaccination of all countries. And yes, this includes those small developing nations that are only considered as tourist destinations. Real people actually live there too.
The COVAX facility promised to prevent wealthier nations from trampling on small countries in the race for herd immunity and an end to restrictions. But even this was bypassed. We all want to break free from this awful pandemic. Our lives were collectively uprooted and torn apart in horrible ways. The only way to piece them back together is through these tiny vaccines, shared equally and sustainably.
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