Anger from former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown over Western vaccine policy. In a column published by The Guardian on Monday, August 16, he urges leaders to convene a summit to address the shortage of vaccines in Africa while billions of doses are administered elsewhere.
It is a monumental failure in the West, a “pause”, says Gordon Brown in this forum, where the former British Prime Minister is said to be shocked by the example in South Africa where millions of doses of vaccines have been produced in recent weeks for export to Europe.
Only 1.8% of Africa are vaccinated. At the same time, the African continent is battling the deadliest wave of Covid-19 pollution. Africa, which has only been able to vaccinate 1.8% of its population, is now turning to China for access to valuable doses.
The former Labor leader is attacking a Europe with a neocolonial approach, dividing the world, according to him, between rich and protected people, who have the opportunity to live and those who are poor, unprotected and at risk of extinction.
“Vaccinationalism – and Europe’s neocolonial approach to global health – divides the world into rich and protected people, living and those who are poor, unprotected and at risk of dying”, # vaccines4all https://t.co/sr422qgPsa
– Gordon Brown (@GordonBrown) August 16, 2021 Of the 4.7 billion vaccine doses distributed to date, more than 80% have gone to the richest G20 countries. As a result, he adds, rich countries should be able to release £ 50 billion, or almost € 60 billion in financial assistance through Covax to countries in need, raising patents to allow African countries to manufacture their own vaccines. And sell the doses that have been ordered en masse and that will not be used.
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