By Michelle Nichols

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters). U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres called for $8 billion on Thursday to help vaccinate all 40% of countries in the country by year’s end. The World Health Organization (WHO), however, launched a plan to inoculate 70% by 2022.

Guterres encouraged the Group 20 wealthy countries to fulfil their “desires to get the whole world vaccinated” at the summit in Rome later this year.

He said, “Not having equitable distribution of vaccines in the world is not just a matter of being moral but also a matter of being stupid” at a news conference that he held with Tedros Adhanom Gebreyesus, WHO Director General.

Globally, over 6.3 billion coronavirus vaccinations have been given so far.

According to Our World in Data data, more than 50% of the globe has not received at least one COVID-19 vaccination. And less than 5% Africans are fully vaccinated according to the top African public health official.

Plan by WHO calls on countries with high levels of vaccine coverage to permit expected delivery of more doses. These additional doses will be sent first to COVAX’s global sharing program, and then to the African Vaccine Acquisition Trust. They will then go where the most urgently required. The plan also asks richer nations for their support in fulfilling and speeding up vaccine dosing and donation promises to COVAX.

The report calls for drugmakers and vaccine manufacturers to urgently fill COVAX/AVAT vaccination contracts. They should also be transparent with monthly production data. It recommends that they provide monthly supply schedules to COVAX, COVAX and other low and middle income countries.

Guterres stated that the U.N. has been a leader, but it does not have power. The power lies in countries producing vaccines, or those that might make them, as well as in companies.

Tedros also asked why the countries could not agree to a temporary waiver in intellectual property rights for COVID-19 therapies and vaccines at the World Trade Organization.

“If this is impossible, how can we get the TRIPS waiver? Tedros said. Tedros said.

“Manufacturers, governments must really ask themselves that question,” he stated.

After a Monday meeting, sources revealed that the negotiations for such an agreement – which were proposed by South Africa (and India) a year ago – are still in limbo and headed nowhere.