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Month: June 2021

Small businesses unprepared for pandemic-sized climate shock ‘every decade’

“The pandemic has shown that the resilience of businesses matter”, said ITC Executive Director Pamela Coke-Hamilton. “Going green is a survival imperative; the longer firms take to act, the higher the costs become.”

Adaptation gap

Although small businesses account for more than 50 per cent of global emissions, only 38 per cent invested in environmental adaptation, compared to 60 per cent of large firms.

“Developed countries have the financial means to sustain their economies and protect the most vulnerable. But most developing and least-developed countries are unable to do the same,” Ms. Coke-Hamilton said.

She added that if such resilience among micro and small businesses had been necessary during the pandemic, “it will be even more crucial in addressing climate change”, whose economic disruption will be like “a COVID-19-size pandemic happening every decade”.

Tough COVID-19 lessons

Presenting the agency’s latest report, SME Competitiveness Outlook 2021: Empowering The Green Recovery, ITC Chief Economist Barbara Ramos insisted that governments needed to understand the level of vulnerability of small firms in the first year of the pandemic.

“We need to learn from COVID in order to increase the resilience of small firms… two out of three micro and small firms were strongly affected by the pandemic, and that’s compared to half of large firms,” she said.

“We also know that one in four micro firms were at risk of shutting down within three months and this is compared to one in 10 large firms.”

This is significant because companies that managed to withstand the economic downturn caused by COVID-19 “were five times less likely to fire employees during the crisis”, the ITC chief economist said. “And if you add to that the fact that SMEs employ a large share of the world’s population, their resilience really does matter.”

Partnerships are key

To help small businesses rebuild from the pandemic and prepare for the climate crisis while becoming more competitive, Ms. Coke-Hamilton maintained that they will need the support of a network of private and public partners to boost their means to withstand future shocks.

To guide this process, ITC’s report provides a 20-point Green Recovery Plan to help small businesses become more competitive, resilient and green.

“During the pandemic, the liquidity of banks especially in the Caribbean was upwards of $9 billion, but somehow they lacked the ability to attribute value to the green transition process and what this will mean,” she said, before urging governments to advocate with financial institutions “to help them understand the long-term strategy and the need to invest.”

According to ITC, nearly 60 per cent of African companies that invested in greening their enterprise said that this led to new, higher-quality and more products. Access to new markets was also a positive outcome of this investment, along with lower costs. 

Madagascar’s hungry ‘holding on for dear life’, WFP chief warns

World Food Programme (WFP) Executive Director David Beasley, explained that he’d met women and children who had “walked for hours” to get to the food distribution points.  

“These were the ones who were healthy enough to make it”, he added.  

Climate change factor 

Southern Madagascar is experiencing its worst drought in four decades with more than 1.14 million people food insecure, the top UN official said in a statement, from a nutrition centre in the region.  

Of those, an estimated 14,000 people are already in catastrophic conditions, known as IPC Phase 5, which will double by October. 

“There have been back-to-back droughts in Madagascar which have pushed communities right to the very edge of starvation”, he explained.  

Drawing attention to suffering families and people dying from severe hunger, he spelled out that “this is not because of war or conflict, this is because of climate change”.  

While this area of the world has contributed nothing to climate change, they are “paying the highest price”, he added. 

Scavenging 

The gravity of the situation has forced thousands of people to leave their homes to search for food while those remaining barely get by, surviving with measures like foraging for wild food, according to WFP.  

“Families have been living on raw red cactus fruits, wild leaves and locusts for months now”, said the UN official. 

Furthermore, the remote location of many communities, coupled with poor roads, has enabled few aid workers to access the area.  

“We can’t turn our backs on the people living here while the drought threatens thousands of innocent lives”, he underscored. 

Most vulnerable 

WFP said that the Global Acute Malnutrition (GAM) level in children under-five in Madagascar has almost doubled over the last four months, to an alarming 16.5 per cent.  

And the district of Ambovombe is among the worst affected, where GAM rates of 27 per cent indicate a life-threatening scenario for many children.  

“This is enough to bring even the most hardened humanitarian to tears”, said Mr. Beasley.  

Holding back the tide  

Since late last year, WFP has been working closely with the Malagasy Government and other partners to address severe hunger.  

However, as the crisis deepens, those efforts must be intensified.  

Last week the WFP chief met with the Prime Minister Christian Ntsay and senior officials, to identify immediate and long-term solutions to this crisis.  

To help stop a preventable tragedy from unfolding before our eyes, WFP said, the agency needs $78.6 million dollars to provide lifesaving food for the next lean season.  

“Now is the time to stand up, act and keep supporting the Malagasy Government to hold back the tide of climate change and save lives’’, urged Mr. Beasley. 

Executive Director David Beasley meets families and children seeking treatment for severe malnutrition at a nutrition centre in southern Madagascar.

© WFP/Shelley Thakral
Executive Director David Beasley meets families and children seeking treatment for severe malnutrition at a nutrition centre in southern Madagascar.

UN officials appeal for extension of lifesaving cross-border aid operations into Syria

More than 1,000 trucks have been transporting food, medicine and other items through the Bab al-Hawa border crossing each month over the past year, but a resolution authorizing these operations is set to expire on 10 July. 

“I strongly appeal to the members of the Council to reach consensus on allowing cross border operations as a vital channel of support for another year”, Mr. Guterres said, speaking via video link from Brussels.  

“A failure to extend the Council’s authorization would have devastating consequences”, he warned. 

More dire than ever 

A decade of war in Syria has left 13.4 million people dependent on aid relief. The UN humanitarian operation there is the biggest in the world, with around $10 billion needed to support people affected by the conflict, whether in the country or as refugees across the region. 

The Secretary-General reported that for many Syrians, conditions are worse than at any time since fighting began, and the situation in the northwest is the most dire in the country.  More than 70 per cent of people require humanitarian assistance to survive, and nearly three million are displaced.  

Mr. Guterres said more humanitarian access is required to reach those most in need. 

“That is why I have been clearly expressing how important it is to maintain and expand access, including cross-border and cross-line operations”, he told ambassadors. 

“We are in dialogue with Turkey and groups in control of the area, and I have strong hopes that it will be possible to start cross-line operations soon. But we must recognize that they will never be able to replace cross-border assistance at the present levels.” 

‘Simply no substitute’ 

As the clock ticks while ambassadors deliberate, the UN and partners will continue to deliver assistance to Syrians, the acting head of the UN humanitarian affairs office, OCHA, told the Council. 

Ramesh Rajasingham pointed out that the cross-border mechanism is also “one of the most heavily scrutinized and monitored aid operations in the world”, and failure to extend it will have stark consequences as NGOs would be unable to meet the massive needs. 

“With 90 per cent of people in need requiring assistance for their survival, they would face a truly catastrophic situation. There is simply no substitute for the cross-border operation”, he stated. 

Mr. Rajasingham emphasized that while the UN and partners use all possible means to reach people in northwest Syria, operations across frontlines from within the country have not been possible. However, these would complement, and not replace, the cross-border mechanism. 

“When it comes to delivering life-saving aid to people in need across Syria, all channels should be made, and kept, available. The stakes are simply too high otherwise”, he said. 

“I echo the Secretary-General’s call to the Security Council to help ensure that the United Nations and its humanitarian partners have every opportunity to assist people in need by extending the cross-border authorization for 12 months.”

Great Barrier Reef in danger, UN World Heritage Committee draft report finds

The World Heritage Committee, convened under the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), said the country has not done enough to protect the world’s largest coral reef system from the impacts of climate change. 

Climate change and coral bleaching 

Despite commitments and progress under a long-term sustainability plan known as Reef 2050, the Great Barrier Reef continues to deteriorate, according to the report, and has suffered significant coral bleaching over the past five years. 

“It can be concluded that, despite many positive achievements by the State Party, progress has been insufficient in meeting key targets of the Reef 2050 Plan,” the draft report said.  

The UN committee consists of representatives from 21 countries and its next meeting will be held virtually from China in July.  

“The Plan requires stronger and clearer commitments, in particular towards urgently countering the effects of climate change, but also towards accelerating water quality improvement and land management measures,” the report continued. 

“The widespread effects of the consecutive coral bleaching events further add to the significant concerns regarding the future of the property.” 

As the reef “is facing ascertained danger”, the report calls for inscribing it on the on the List of World Heritage in Danger. 

Australian opposition 

Australia will challenge the proposed recommendation, according to a statement published on Tuesday on the website of the country’s Environment Minister, Sussan Ley. 

It said authorities “have been stunned by a back flip on previous assurances from UN officials that the Reef would not face such a recommendation prior to the UNESCO World Heritage Committee meeting hosted by China in July, and are concerned about a deviation from normal process in assessing World Heritage Property Conservation status.” 

Ms. Ley said that the draft decision had been made on the basis of a desk top review and without adequate consultation. 

“The Great Barrier Reef is the best managed reef in the world and this draft recommendation has been made without examining the Reef first hand, and without the latest information,” she said. 

Time running out to prevent ‘worst case scenario’ arising in Afghanistan

From politics to security, the peace process to the economy, Deborah Lyons, Special Representative and Head of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), said the “possible slide toward dire scenarios is undeniable”. 

“The relentless spirit of the Afghans and their incredible resilience is being severely tested”, she said, reminding that what happens there is “of global consequence”, and the Security Council needed to be fully aware of the gravity of the situation.  

Unfolding reality 

She described the mid-April announcement, led by the United States, of troop withdrawal after two decades of war as a “seismic tremor” for the country, which had happened unexpectedly fast.  

The decision to pull out was part of the February 2020 agreement between the US and the Taliban to create space for peace among Afghans, instead, “actions on the battlefield have been far greater than progress at the negotiating table”, she added. 

She told ambassadors that the public and the diplomatic community in Kabul have been “alarmed at the lack of political unity”, which must be addressed or risk contributing to further Taliban territorial advances.  

Taliban advance 

Through its intensified military campaign, the Taliban has taken more than 50 of Afghanistan’s 370 districts since the beginning of May. 

“Most districts that have been taken surround provincial capitals, suggesting that the Taliban are positioning themselves to try and take these capitals once foreign forces are fully withdrawn”, warned the Special Representative, calling it “a tragic course of action” that would lead to “increased and prolonged violence” and threaten to destroy much of what has been built and hard won over the past 20 years.  

However, she noted that any efforts to install a militarily imposed Government in Kabul would “go against the will of the Afghan people and against the stated positions of the regional countries and the broader international community”. 

Multiple crises 

Meanwhile, nearly one-third of Afghans face emergency levels of food insecurity, as drought worsens, and internal displacements increases. 

“The World Bank has estimated that as a result of the conflict, and the severe third wave of COVID, the drought, the weakened social fabric, and other factors, Afghanistan’s poverty rate could rise from 50 per cent to more than 70 per cent”, warned Ms. Lyons.  

Yet, despite highlighting the importance of international humanitarian aid, recent contributions toward the 2021 appeal for $1.3 billion, remains only 30 per cent funded. 

Civilian casualties 

In the first quarter of the year, civilian casualties increased by 29 per cent compared to that of last year, the UNAMA chief said, noting that women casualties increased by 37 per cent and children by 23 per cent. 

“Parties must immediately…implement civilian protection measures”, she stressed. 

And preserving women’s rights remains “a paramount concern” that must not be used as “a bargaining chip at the negotiating table”, added Ms. Lyons. 

“Human rights are not negotiable”, she underscored, calling on the international community and regional countries to “reiterate the importance of these rights in the peace negotiations”. 

The relentless spirit of the Afghans and their incredible resilience is being severely tested — UN Special Representative

Ticking clock 

The UN official said there was barely time left “to prevent a worse-case scenario from materializing”, pointing to the reality that “increased conflict in Afghanistan means increased insecurity for many other countries, near and far”. 

“A fragmented conflict creates a more permissive environment for terrorist groups to recruit, finance, plan and conduct operations with a global reach”, she attested, adding that one of UNAMA’s key objectives is to “continue to work with all partners”. 

Any future Government will need international engagement and support, she said, upholding that this is “not the time to weaken our resolve or, worse, to contribute even inadvertently to the ongoing signals of despair”. 

“There is only one acceptable direction for Afghanistan…away from the battlefield and back to the negotiating table”, concluded the UNAMA chief. 

Corruption 

Ghada Fathy Ismail Waly, Executive Director, UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) briefed ambassadors on cooperative agreements between her agency and UNAMA, including anti-corruption measures.   

Recalling the political declaration from the General Assembly’s discussion on corruption, she highlighted UNODC’s cross-border efforts to combat drug-related crimes and preserve Afghan’s “hard won gains.” 

Ms. Waly also drew attention to alliances between criminal and terrorist elements pointing out that they have yielded the world’s highest levels of casualties from terror attacks.   

Drug crops 

Noting that the pandemic had not impacted large poppy harvests to fuel the world’s supply of heroin, Ms. Waly linked the low prices to the degree with which the “illicit economy threatens peace.”    

She urged that “evidence-based prevention and treatment” for narcotics be made a priority and called better guidance for Afghan police “imperative”. 

Against this backdrop, the UNODC chief stressed the need for prompt action in the countryside to help limit production.

Click here to watch the meeting in its entirety.

‘Invisible’ stateless people could miss out on COVID-19 jabs, UNHCR warns

That’s the warning from UN refugee agency, UNHCR, which on Tuesday published a report showing that the “great majority” of national immunization plans in 157 countries lacked “clarity” on anticipated coverage for people who have no legal proof of their identity,  “regardless of whether their age, health status or role in society would otherwise place them in a priority group”.

Although it is relatively common for governments not to identify stateless people in their vaccination plans – and only two have barred stateless people specifically – UNHCR said that there were many reasons why those without identification papers could be left unprotected during the pandemic.

“In many contexts, stateless people were barred from accessing testing and treatment due to lack of legal status and were excluded from social services, notwithstanding the fact that they faced especially severe socio-economic impacts” during the first year of the pandemic, UNHCR said.

Its report maintained that the trend predates the pandemic and that those who do not have identity documents will be excluded from vaccination “unless States make particular efforts to reach them”.

Typically, stateless people “do not appear in civil registers or national population registers; their lack of legal identity documents has effectively made them invisible to the authorities”, the UN agency explained.

ID obstacle

There are at least 4.2 million people without a nationality, in 94 countries, according to UNHCR, whose mandate is to prevent and reduce statelessness, and to protect stateless people who are among the minorities hardest-hit by the new coronavirus.

To ensure that national vaccination plans are as inclusive as possible, UNHCR has urged authorities in host countries to accept alternative forms of proof of identity than nationality or identity cards.

“Given that many stateless people already face widespread exclusion and marginalization, barriers to access must be addressed and special consideration given to their situation,” said UNHCR’s International Protection chief, Gillian Triggs.

The UN agency said that since the pandemic began, many stateless people have been too afraid of being arrested or deported to seek health care and access social services.

A Shona woman is one of an estimated 18,500 stateless people currently living in Kenya.

© UNHCR/Anthony Karumba
A Shona woman is one of an estimated 18,500 stateless people currently living in Kenya.

The potentially high cost of medical attention and vaccinations “can also be prohibitive for stateless people”, UNHCR noted, as they are usually not covered by public healthcare schemes in the 212 countries and locations where COVID-19 immunisation has begun.

Despite these obstacles, the agency pointed out that the UN-partnered equitable vaccination access programme COVAX was set up to provide jabs to all 190 participating countries or territories which could then immunise their most vulnerable members of society.

UNHCR also reiterated World Health Organization (WHO) guidance that vaccinations should be prioritised for “disadvantaged ethnic, racial, gender, and religious groups, vulnerable migrants in irregular situations, nomadic populations and hard-to-reach populations”, which include stateless communities. 

Birth registrations jam

A formerly stateless man who was born in Kyrgyzstan has become an Uzbek citizen.
A formerly stateless man who was born in Kyrgyzstan has become an Uzbek citizen., by © UNHCR/Elyor Nematov

UNHCR also warned that the suspension of birth registrations in a number of countries will likely increase statelessness globally. “Countries where birth registration services were partially or fully suspended are now reporting lower birth registration rates as well as substantial backlogs,” the agency said, adding that birth registry campaigns for hard-to-reach populations at risk of statelessness “have also been suspended in many contexts”.

Highlighting the disproportionate impact of the pandemic on minorities which make up 75 per cent of the world’s known stateless people, UNHCR explained that their loss of livelihoods and limited access to education and other social services “have worsened existing inequalities in ways likely to extend beyond the end of the pandemic”.

Good practices

A number of countries now offer universal COVID-19 vaccination strategies including Spain, Portugal, Turkmenistan, Lebanon, Kuwait and Jordan.

In the United Kingdom, undocumented migrants, including stateless people, will be able to receive the vaccine “and their data will not be shared with the police”.

Link between education and well-being never clearer, UN pushes for ‘health-promoting’ schools

There has been increased stress, anxiety and other mental health issues, while an estimated 365 million primary school students have gone without school meals, according to the World Health Organization (WHO) and the UN specialized agency handling education issues, UNESCO.  

Based on a set of eight global benchmarks, Global Standards for Health-promoting Schools, calls for all classrooms to promote life skills, cognitive and socioemotional skills and healthy lifestyles for learners.   

“These newly launched global standards are designed to create schools that nurture education and health, and that equip students with the knowledge and skills for their future health and well-being, employability and life prospects”, said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.  

Linking schools and health 

Clear evidence shows that comprehensive health and nutrition programmes in schools, have significant impacts among students.  

“Schools play a vital role in the well-being of students, families and their communities, and the link between education and health has never been more evident”, Tedros added. 

The new standards, which will be piloted in Botswana, Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya and Paraguay, contribute to WHO’s target of making one billion people healthier by 2023 and the global Education 2030 Agenda coordinated by UNESCO.  

“Education and health are interdependent basic human rights for all, at the core of any human right, and essential to social and economic development”, said UNESCO Director General, Audrey Azouley.   

Making the case 

School health and nutrition interventions in low-income areas where impediments such as parasitic worms or anemia are prevalent, can lead to 2.5 years of additional schooling, according to the UN agencies. 

Moreover, malaria prevention interventions can result in a 62 per cent reduction in absenteeism; nutritious school meals upped enrolment rates by nine per cent, and attendance by eight per cent on average; and free screening and eyeglasses have raised the probability of students passing standardized reading and math tests by five per cent.  

And promoting handwashing has cut gastrointestinal and respiratory illnesses between 21 and 61 per cent in low income countries, resulting in fewer absentees.  

“A school that is not health-promoting is no longer justifiable and acceptable”, said Ms. Azouley.   

Promote health in schools 

Comprehensive sex education encourages healthier behaviour, promotes sexual and reproductive health and rights, and improves outcomes such as a reduction in HIV infection and adolescent pregnancies, WHO and UNESCO said. 

A school that is not health-promoting is no longer justifiable and acceptable — UNESCO chief

By enhancing water and sanitation (WASH) services and supplies in school, as well as educating on menstrual hygiene, girls can maintain themselves with dignity and may even miss less school while menstruating. 

“I call for all of us to affirm our commitment and role, to make every school a health-promoting school”, underscored the UNESCO chief. 

Upping the standards 

The Health Promoting Schools approach was introduced by WHO, UNESCO and the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in 1995 and adopted in over 90 countries and territories.   

However, only a small number of countries have implemented it at scale, and even fewer have effectively adapted their education systems to include health promotion. 

Famine knocking at the door of 41 million worldwide, WFP warns

Recent analysis by the UN agency reveals 41 million people in 43 countries “are teetering on the very edge of famine”, up from 27 million two years ago. 

Help needed now 

“I am heartbroken at what we’re facing in 2021. We now have four countries where famine-like conditions are present”, WFP chief David Beasley told its Executive Board on Monday, according to a press release. 

He described the situation as “just tragic”, as “these are real people with real names.”  

WFP said 584,000 people are already experiencing famine-like conditions in Ethiopia, Madagascar, South Sudan and Yemen.   

Nigeria and Burkina Faso are also of particular concern as they have pockets where famine-like conditions are present. 

“In Somalia in 2011, 260,000 people died of hunger – and by the time the famine was actually declared – half of that number had already died,” Mr. Beasley recalled. “We can’t debate the numbers to death when people need our help now.” 

Conflict, climate change and currency depreciation 

Hunger has risen due to conflict, climate change and economic shocks, WFP said.  However, soaring prices for basic foods have also compounded the situation, with the global cost of maize rising almost 90 per cent year-on-year, for example. 

In many countries, currency depreciation is also a factor, the agency added.  This has driven prices even higher, stoking food insecurity in places such as Lebanon, Nigeria, Sudan, Venezuela and Zimbabwe. 

WFP is this year mounting its biggest operation ever, targeting 139 million people.  With sufficient funding and access, the agency said it can provide them with lifesaving food and nutritional assistance. 

Mr. Beasley underlined the urgent need for support. 

“I want to emphasize just how bad it is out there. Today, 41 million people are literally knocking on famine’s door. The price tag to reach them is about $6 billion. We need funding and we need it now,” he said

Human Rights Council urged to support UN chief’s call for a ‘new social contract’ after COVID-19

Citing a rise in “extreme poverty, inequalities and injustice” in the last 18 months, Ms. Bachelet also warned that democratic and civic space has been eroded.

These were all problems that could be addressed if countries embraced the UN Secretary-General’s call for a New Social Contract, Ms. Bachelet said, on the opening day of the Human Rights Council’s 47th session in Geneva.

The initiative will be supported by a “New Global Deal of solidarity”, which shares “power, resources and opportunities more fairly”, in line with a plan for a UN-wide agenda that António Guterres intends to present to the UN General Assembly in September.

Trust in people, peace, development

“These are bold steps that place unprecedented emphasis on the power of human rights to ensure sound and inclusive development, sustainable peace, and societies grounded in trust”, Ms. Bachelet added.

“Navigating an…inclusive, green, sustainable and resilient future, will be the work of this generation of world leaders – or their downfall”, the High Commissioner for Human Rights maintained, while acknowledging that many countries were facing “collapsing global trade, falling remittances, turmoil in commodities prices and debt burdens”.

Nonetheless, Ms. Bachelet, who is a former two-time President of Chile, also said that it was possible to deliver on economic and social rights by using proven techniques to combat corruption and illicit financial flows, deploying progressive fiscal policies and increasing budget transparency, participation and accountability.

“The evidence is conclusive: countries that had invested in social protection have been better able to weather the crisis,” she said, adding that a New Social Contract would rebuild public trust “through stronger support for fundamental rights”.

It was vital to establish societies in which policymakers looked first to combat inequalities and promote rights to social protection, health, education, and more, the High Commissioner continued.

Outrages continue in Tigray

Displaced people in Adigrat town, in the Tigray region of northern Ethiopia.
Displaced people in Adigrat town, in the Tigray region of northern Ethiopia., by © UNICEF/Zerihun Sewunet

As is the tradition on the opening day of a new session of the Council, Ms. Bachelet also used her opening statement to highlight her Office’s concerns in more than a dozen countries, from Afghanistan to the Philippines.

Among them, Ms. Bachelet reiterated her concerns over continuing violence against civilians in Ethiopia’s Tigray region “by all parties to the conflict”, more than six months since fighting began.

The High Commissioner noted reports of serious violations of international humanitarian law and gross human rights violations and abuses, all linked to clashes between central government troops and forces loyal to the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF).

These included “extrajudicial executions, arbitrary arrests and detentions, sexual violence against children as well as adults and forced displacement”.

Eritrean soldiers remain

There were also “credible reports” that Eritrean soldiers were still operating in Tigray “and continue to perpetrate violations of human rights and humanitarian law”, Ms. Bachelet said, adding that the humanitarian situation remained dire and that an estimated 350,000 people faced famine.

The alert follows repeated warnings from humanitarian agencies that their access is regularly blocked and that an unknown number of people are in need and impossible to reach.

In her statement, Ms. Bachelet also told Member States that an investigation into the situation in Tigray had begun on 16 May, in partnership with the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission.

The investigators’ work should conclude in August when their findings and recommendations will be made public, the High Commissioner said, before warning that “in many other parts of Ethiopia” there had been “alarming incidents of deadly ethnic and inter-communal violence and displacement” – all linked to longstanding grievances.

These complaints should be addressed through a nationwide dialogue, the High Commissioner said, before insisting that the ongoing deployment of military forces was “not a durable solution”. 

COVID-19: First mRNA vaccine tech transfer hub a ‘great step forward’

The facility will allow manufacturers from developing countries to receive training in how to produce vaccines, and the relevant licenses to do so, as part of global efforts to scale-up access to lifesaving treatments. 

The development follows WHO’s call in April for public and private companies to express their interest in creating technology transfer hubs so that low and middle-income countries could meet their urgent need for vaccines, amid critical shortages. 

‘A key moment’ 

“Today’s announcement is a great step forward for South Africa, and for the world. I hope this will be a key moment for increasing production capacity in Africa for COVID-19 vaccines, but also for future vaccines”, said WHO chief Tedros Adhamon Ghebreyesus, speaking during his bi-weekly media briefing from Geneva. 

Messenger RNA, or mRNA technology, instructs cells to make a protein that generates an immune response in the body, thus producing the antibodies that provide protection against a disease. 

It is the basis for the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines being used by governments worldwide, and in the UN-supported COVAX global vaccine solidarity initiative. 

“It’s potentially easier to scale than other vaccine technologies and could be faster and easier to adapt to variants of concern”, Tedros said.

The South African consortium involves a biotech company called Afrigen Biologics and Vaccines, which will act as the hub by manufacturing mRNA vaccines and providing training to another manufacturer called Biovac.   

WHO’s role includes establishing the criteria for the technology transfer, assessing applications and developing standards, while the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, will provide guidance through the Partnership for African Vaccines Manufacturing. 

Changing the narrative  

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa underlined the importance of the hub for the continent. 

“The ability to manufacture vaccines, medicines and other health-related commodities will help put Africa on a path to self-determination”, he said, speaking via video link.  

“Through this initiative and others, we will change the narrative of an Africa that is a centre of disease and poor development. We will create a narrative that celebrates our successes in reducing the burden of disease, in advancing self-reliance, and also advancing sustainable development.” 

Highs and lows 

The announcement of the hub, with others in the pipeline, comes as COVID-19 cases worldwide decline for an eighth week in a row, and as deaths have dropped over the past seven weeks, consecutively. 

While welcoming the good news, Tedros said new infections and deaths remain high globally, with more than 2.5 million cases and 64,000 deaths reported last week. 

The rate of decline has slowed in most regions, and every region has countries that are witnessing a rapid increase in caseloads and deaths.  In Africa, cases and deaths increased by almost 40 per cent in the past week, while some countries have seen their numbers tripled or quadrupled. 

“While a handful of countries have high vaccination rates and are now seeing lower numbers of hospitalisations and deaths, other countries in Africa, the Americas and Asia are now facing steep epidemics”, Tedros said, adding that these cases and deaths are largely avoidable. 

Several factors are driving increases, including increased spread of virus variants of concern, more socializing, ineffective use of public health and social measures, and vaccine inequity. 

“The inequitable access to vaccines has demonstrated that in a crisis, low-income countries cannot rely on vaccine-producing countries to supply their needs”, he said. 

WHO continues to push for greater sharing of knowledge, technology and licenses to boost vaccine manufacturing, and for the waiver of related intellectual property rights.

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