“We need higher income countries to finance the procurement of vaccines through the COVAX Facility, and to share vaccines with lower income countries,” Al-Mandhari stressed.
The WHO official further added: “And finally, countries in the Region are not strictly and consistently applying the public health and social measures, with poor adherence among the public.”
He wondered: “How can we, as individuals, protect ourselves? Vaccinated people need to continue adhering to mask use, physical distancing, and other measures, and those who have not yet been vaccinated should do so as soon as they can, to add an extra layer of protection against COVID-19 and its variants, including Delta.”
He added: “More than 18 months into the pandemic, we also need to start thinking about the medium- and long-term actions to be taken to make sure we never find ourselves this vulnerable and exposed again: national capacities need to be strengthened across disease surveillance, laboratory science, clinical management, community engagement, among other areas. Importantly, we need to advance genome sequencing and oxygen production at national level and to build regional capacities for vaccine production. WHO is currently giving high priority to these issues.”
“ll of this requires working together, he urged in order “to benefit from our experiences and maximizing the use of our collective resources.”
“Our Region is rich with human resources, knowledge, and research capacities,” he further explained.
He underscored that “despite the lessons learnt throughout the pandemic – that COVID-19 can only be beaten through cooperation, solidarity, and coordination among countries and communities alike – we are now seeing a very disturbing turn of events, with the politicization of the vaccine rollouts becoming even more evident.”
“It is time to put politics aside for the good of humanity. We will not succeed until everyone is protected – regardless of age, gender, race, geographical location, or political affiliation. We are in this together, and we can only come out of this together.”
Source: Jordan News Agency