Ensuring the global COVID-19 vaccine equity: Universal vaccine access strategy in the context of low and-middle-income countries

• Published in: Global public health Vol. 17; no. 4; pp. 614 - 621
• Main Authors: Parray, Ateeb Ahmad, Yadav, Uday Narayan, Das, Anupom, Ali, ARM Mehrab, Mollick, Shemana, Saha, Senjuti, Mistry, Sabuj Kanti
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Taylor & Francis 01.04.2022; Taylor & Francis Ltd
• Subjects: Access; Apartheid; Containment; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; COVID-19 - epidemiology; COVID-19 - prevention & control; COVID-19 vaccine; COVID-19 Vaccines; Decision makers; Decision making; Developing Countries; Donations; Humans; Immunization; Income; Income generation; LDCs; low and-middle-income countries; Nationalism; Pandemics; SARS-CoV-2; universal vaccine access strategy; Uptake; vaccine equity; Vaccines; Variants; COVID-19; low and-middle-income countries; COVID-19 vaccine; universal vaccine access strategy; vaccine equity
• ISSN: 1744-1692; 1744-1706
• DOI: 10.1080/17441692.2022.2029928

Lockdowns and other COVID-19 containment measures enforced to kerb the pandemic have had a massive impact on the overall growth of the world. Income-generating activities have been reduced, but the impact is more consequential among the low- and middle-income countries. The disproportionate access to vaccines between wealthy and poor countries has resulted in 'vaccine apartheid.' An 'every-country-for-itself' approach or 'vaccine nationalism' coupled with 'vaccine hesitancy' has contributed to disproportionate access to and uptake of the COVID-19 vaccines. This paper argues that it is time for the decision-makers to adopt a Universal Vaccine Access Strategy (UVAS). The authors argue that sharing resources by establishing local production of vaccines wherever possible, timely donation of unused COVID-19 vaccines to developing countries and addressing vaccine hesitancy have become imperative to interrupt the emergence of new variants.