UN chief calls for immediate attention to 3 global emergencies
«Among the challenges we face, there are three global emergencies that demand immediate attention,» the UN chief told the press conference held at the UN headquarters in New York, Xinhua reports.
The secretary-general said that the first global emergency that needs immediate attention is the «distribution of vaccines for COVID-19.»
Guterres said that more than 70 million doses have been administered, but less than 20,000 of these were on the African continent.
«A global immunity gap puts everyone at risk,» he said.
«Vaccine nationalism is an economic as well as a moral failure,» he said. «While every country has the right - and the duty - to protect its own people, no country can afford to neglect the rest of the world.»
«We must close the funding gap; ramp-up vaccine production by making licenses widely available and sharing technology; and get doses into the arms of all who need them - starting with health workers and those most at risk around the world,» said the secretary-general, adding that «we need a global vaccination campaign to deal with a global pandemic.»
«The second area for urgent action is financial support for all countries that need it,» said Guterres.
«In today's world, self-interest cannot be separated from solidarity. The global economy is made up of an intricate web of transactions between developed and developing countries,» he said.
«While the pandemic continues to disrupt supply chains, developed (economies) will not make a full recovery,» added the UN chief.
The top UN official warned that for a fast and full recovery, the developed world should not only share vaccines equitably; it should support developing economies by ensuring continued liquidity, including through the issuance of Special Drawing Rights, and expanding debt relief to all developing countries and Middle-income countries in need of it.