Vaccine production in India will be used to help all of humanity fight this crisis, the WHO chief said.
New York:
World Health Organization (WHO) Chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s assurance that India will use its vaccine production capacity to help countries fight COVID-19 , asserting that the pandemic can only be defeated by mobilizing resources for the common good.
In his address to the 75th session of the United Nations General Assembly on Saturday, Prime Minister Modi said that “as the largest vaccine-producing country in the world, I wish to give one more assurance to the global community today Today India’s vaccine production and distribution capacity will be used to help all mankind fight this crisis. “
He said that even in these very difficult times of the raging pandemic, the Indian pharmaceutical industry has sent essential drugs to more than 150 countries.
“Thank you for your commitment to solidarity, Prime Minister @narendramodi. It is only together, by mobilizing our strengths and resources jointly for the common good, that we will be able to end the # COVID-19 pandemic” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a tweet.
PM Modi told the 193 members of the United Nations General Assembly that in and around India, “we are moving forward with phase 3 clinical trials in India”.
PM Modi further assured that India will also help all countries to improve their cold chain and storage capacities for vaccine delivery.
However, he questioned the United Nations response in the fight against the pandemic which has so far infected more than 32 million people worldwide and will soon reach the grim milestone of one million dead.
“Over the past 8-9 months, the whole world has battled the Coronavirus pandemic. Where is the United Nations in this common fight against the pandemic? Where is its effective response?” PM Modi said.
Melissa Fleming, Assistant Secretary-General for Global Communications at the United Nations, said Prime Minister Modi’s assurance was “good news” because United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the General Assembly in his speech last week that “vaccinationalism” is not only unjust but self-defeating.
As the COVID-19 pandemic soon reached the dark threshold of one million dead, Tedros Adhanom Guterres had rebuked countries that were making “side deals” to have a COVID-19 vaccine exclusively for their own populations.
“Such ‘vaccinationalism’ is not only unfair, it is self-destructive. None of us are safe until we are all safe. Likewise, economies cannot function with a runaway pandemic.” , said Tedros Adhanom Guterres.
