Image credit: AFP
The World Bank has urged leaders of African countries to move quickly to secure Covid-19 vaccinations for their populations as the disease continues to claim more lives on the continent.
The President of World Bank Group, David Malpass who made the call recently at the virtual meeting on the Africa COVID-19 Vaccine Financing and Deployment Strategy, lamented that COVID-19 has had a heavy toll on the people of Africa in terms of lives lost and the severe economic impact that is hitting the most vulnerable the hardest.
“Tens of millions of people are falling into extreme poverty. The ongoing loss of human capital will have crippling long-term consequences — through lost jobs and job training opportunities, school closures, missed vaccinations, the regression in health and nutrition, and elsewhere”, he said.
“It’s vital to prioritize the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines. We estimate that every month of delay costs the African continent $13.8 billion in lost GDP. That’s in addition to the loss of lives and human capital”.
To this end, Mr Malpass asked African leaders to avail themselves of the financing available from bank and other partners to help with this.
“The World Bank Group stands ready to work swiftly with our clients and partners to respond to this pandemic”, he assured.
As President Ramaphosa emphasized, vaccinations are a huge undertaking for every country. The World Bank can assist with many aspects including facilitating the procurement of vaccines.
Inoculating populations will require delivering the vaccines safely and effectively. Cold chain equipment, energy infrastructure, logistic, transport, community engagement and trained human resources are all key areas needed for effective deployment of vaccines, according to Mr Malpass.
“Where there are gaps in readiness, we should work quickly to fill them. Since the outbreak of COVID-19 last March, the Bank has committed $25 billion to African countries to support their health and economic recovery, and we expect to commit an additional $15 billion by June.
Our Board has authorized up to $12 billion to support countries in their vaccination efforts. We’ve begun taking individual vaccination programs through the Board. Last week’s funding for Lebanon will help vaccinate over 2 million people, with vaccines are expected to arrive from the manufacturer in early February”.
Mr Malpass said they were preparing emergency vaccine financing projects in 21 countries in Africa, including DRC, Ethiopia, Niger, Mozambique, Tunisia, Eswatini and Cabo Verde.
The funds are available now, and for most African countries, the financing would be on grant or highly concessional terms. IFC is working to mobilize financing for vaccine production and therapeutics focused on developing countries, he added.
“In implementing our vaccines programs, we’re working directly with governments, including to finance their purchases from vaccine manufacturers and via COVAX. For deployment efforts, we’re working with partners such as the WHO and UNICEF”.
He therefore urged the African leaders to focus and prioritize efforts toward these funding programs, and not slow the momentum through complex contracts and intermediaries.
“Our financing is available today and vaccine manufacturers are eager to work with countries on delivery dates and direct contracts”, Mr Malpass assured.
“We would encourage those countries that have not yet requested World Bank support to send a letter to their World Bank Country Director asking for support for vaccine procurement and deployment from the $12 billion facility. We look forward to receiving these letters so that our teams can expeditiously support you”.
As at 28th January 2021, there were 3,515,047 Covid-19 cases reported in Africa, with 88,993 deaths, according to Africa CDC latest update on the deadly virus.
African Eye Report
