The moral vaccination.

Byline: Dr. Usman W. Chohan

In 2020, the world waited with bated breath as pharma companies around the world raced to arrive at a workable, safe, and efficient vaccine against the coronavirus (COVID-19). By December, 2020, good news was coming in from various companies including BioNTech (Pfizer), Moderna, Sinopharm, and Gamaleya. By January, 2021 almost 300 vaccines were being tracked by the London School of Hygiene as going through various stages of development. As of this week, more than 35 million doses have been administered in 49 countries.

Seeing such increasing rates of inoculation around the world, as well as a growing number of available vaccines, has made many in Pakistan wonder when they will be able to get their requisite dosages. For all of Pakistan's success during the early stages of the pandemic, thanks to structural factors as well as important policy decisions, it appears that the country does not possess a comprehensive approach to the inoculation phase that is currently underway. Part of this problem is attributable to the external front, which has laid bare the deplorable features of cutthroat capitalism and wretched vaccine nationalism. Yet part of the problem is also attributable to our internal shortcomings, and these too require attention.

On the external front, vaccine nationalism has proven to be a truly despicable feature of the current international order, as so-called 'developed' countries continue to hoard the global supply of vaccine doses well in excess of their requirements. They are also creating agreements with big pharma to set aside dosages at prices that are prohibitive for the world's masses. According to data gathered thus far from eight promising vaccines in phase-3 development that have done deals with governments, 53 percent of doses have been bought up by 'developed' countries, even though they represent a paltry 14 percent of the world's population.

At the same time, governments are now pushing through vaccines whose effectiveness leaves much to be desired. Sinopharm vaccination results in Brazil show a closer to 50 percent effectiveness rate, far less than was touted earlier. Meanwhile, Bharat Biotech is being egged on by the Modi government to push out vaccines despite inadequate testing and phase-3 data. In a militant and illiterate society such as India's, the 'rule by spectacle' of the Modi government means that weak science is tolerable but dents to nationalist fervour are not, especially...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT