Osinbajo Calls for Equitable, Affordable Distribution of COVID-19 Vaccine

The Vice-President of Nigeria, Yemi Osinbajo has said the deployment of the COVID-19 vaccine should be done in an equitable and affordable manner rather than on the basis of the highest bidder.

According to a statement by Osinbajo’s spokesman, Laolu Akande, he said the vice-president spoke at the virtual 2020 EURAFRICA Forum with the theme, “Towards a Realistic Euro-African Partnership During and Beyond the COVID-19 Era”.

The vice-president said that such an approach would effectively contain the global spread of COVID-19.

The summit featured presentations from notable global leaders, including the UN Secretary-General, Mr. Antonio Guterres and the Prime Minister of Cape Verde, Mr. Ulisses Correia Silva among others.

“Europe should work closely with Africa to ensure that when a vaccine is finally deployed, it should not be on the basis of the highest bidder but rather be made available at an affordable and in an accessible manner.

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“This is a matter that should not be taken for granted. We saw during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, in richer parts of the world, that orders for test kits and reagents by African countries were deemed too small and tended to be ignored.

“Although Nigeria does not have the resources or means to pre-pay for a COVID-19 vaccine; we are fortunate to be a GAVI supported country.

“We urge the EU to lend support to GAVI’s effort to ensure equitable global access to COVID-19 vaccines under the COVAX initiative. This way, poorer countries and their citizens will get the vaccines they need at the same time as the rest of the world,” he said.