The European Union has pledged to endeavour in closing the vaccination gap in Africa to ensure that the spread of the pandemic is limited.
The Vice President of the EU Commission Joseph Borrell promised at a final press briefing in Kigali on Tuesday that the EU would prioritise a swift response to the pandemic. Borrell said the approach would involve health technology as well as ensuring equitable access to the vaccine as a way of strengthening ties between the two continents.
Borell said the response would not only be from the pandemic health point of view but also close the economic gap attributed to the pandemic.
He said the EU would also help in the areas of sustainable growth, peace and security as the foreign ministers of the two continents agreed to work in partnership on Tuesday.
“We have recognised that there is a vaccination gap between Africa and Europe that has to be closed. It is of paramount importance to work quickly because this is not only a moral duty but is also essential for everyone else to put the pandemic globally under control,” said Borrell.
The percentage of Africans fully vaccinated is about 5.3 per cent, which is below the average of 55 per cent to 66 per cent in the US and Europe respectively.
It is has been mentioned that lack of proper financing is one of the challenges facing massive inoculation against COVID-19 in Africa.
“We have recognised that there is a vaccination gap between Africa and Europe that has to be closed. It is of paramount importance to work quickly because this is not only a moral duty but is also essential for everyone else to put the pandemic globally under control,” he said.
Closing the gap
“It is not only from the health point of view but also economics. Closing this vaccination gap is something in which we will have to invest much more resources.”
Borrell underscored that there was an imbalance in capital and wealth between Europe and Africa, but also promised that the two continents would share common ambitions and look for solutions as close friends and partners.
“The two continents face many challenges, but at the same time, there are countless opportunities available where they have to work together. With this in mind, we must produce concrete results for our fellow citizens,” he said.
On her part, the Vice President of the African Union Commission Monique Nsanzabaganwa said that the ministers agreed to form a follow-up committee to monitor progress and implementation through tangible projects.
“We specifically heard from our ministers expressing themselves on new challenges. In the theme of resilience, they had a great discussion about the COVID and coping mechanisms including access to vaccines and manufacturing capacity,” said Monique.
Approximately 6.9 billion COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered globally. This is according to COVID-19 tracker vaccines.org, with an average of 24.78 million doses administered daily.
However, only a meagre percentage of 2.87 people in developing countries have received at least one dose of the vaccine.
Burkina Faso, Chad, Uganda, Cameroon, South Sudan, Central African Republic, Liberia and the Democratic Republic of Congo are said to have vaccinated less than 1 per cent of their population.
Earlier, Monique Nsanzabaganwa, the vice-chairwoman of the African Union Commission, urged EU member countries to avoid a policy of not accepting COVID-19 vaccine certificates from the continent, as it could lead to vaccine hesitancy.
The EU-AU Ministerial meeting was held in preparation for the 6th European Union-African Union Summit which will take place early next year in Brussels.
The ministers also deliberated on the current areas of cooperation between Africa and Europe.
The major areas of discussion at the EU-AU Ministerial Meeting included investing in people with a special focus on education, science, technology and skills development in which youth the theme of youth became a great deal; strengthening resilience, peace, security and governance where covid-19 surfaced; migration and mobility; and mobilizing investments for African structural and sustainable transformation.