
Low-income countries have received just 0.2 per cent of all COVID-19 shots given
The vast majority of COVID-19 vaccines administered have so far gone to wealthy nations, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported on Friday.

The vast majority of COVID-19 vaccines administered have so far gone to wealthy nations, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported on Friday.

The UN Secretary-General on Friday welcomed steps announced by the International Monetary and Finance Committee (IMFC) and the World Bank Group Development Committee, to address debt crises and other financial distress to economies arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, “as a sign of hope and renewed multilateralism”.

British politician Alok Sharma was speaking during a global discussion on the ‘green’ transition in sectors such as energy, transport and food systems, held as part of the 2021 Spring Meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

More than 100 countries and economies have now received COVID-19 vaccines through the UN-partnered equitable coronavirus-busting scheme, COVAX.

A UN-backed initiative aims to turn the tide on marine litter.

Travel restrictions during the COVID pandemic have been particularly hard on refugees and migrants who move out of necessity, stranding millions from home, the UN migration agency, IOM, said on Thursday.

Other partners in this new initiative, many of them SRP members, both public and private, are contributing an additional USD 800 million in co-financing.

The AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine could possibly cause rare blood clots in some people but further studies are required to confirm the link, experts with the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday.

Leaders across the world need to “move beyond platitudes” about young people, and deliver a better future for them all, Secretary-General António Guterres told the 10th Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) Youth Forum on Wednesday.

Investing in equitable production and access to COVID-19 vaccines, tests and treatments, is among five “vital changes” the world needs to make this year to address the inequalities the pandemic has exacerbated, the UN’s top health official said, marking World Health Day on Wednesday.