As many as 78 middle- and upper-income countries, including Japan, have so far confirmed their participation in the COVAX Facility, a World Health Organization-led initiative to accelerate the development and distribution of an effective vaccine against COVID-19, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO director-general, said at a press briefing on Friday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 04th September, 2020) As many as 78 middle- and upper-income countries, including Japan, have so far confirmed their participation in the COVAX Facility, a World Health Organization-led initiative to accelerate the development and distribution of an effective vaccine against COVID-19, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO director-general, said at a press briefing on Friday.
"We're delighted that 78 high- and upper-middle-income countries and economies have now confirmed they will participate in the COVAX Facility, and the number is growing. I urge those who have not yet joined to do so by September 18," the director-general said.
Over the course of the past week, Germany, Japan, Norway, and the European Commission have announced publicly that they will take part in the initiative, Tedros added.
"Of course many more countries have joined and we look forward to being able to share the full list in due course," the director-general stated.
On Thursday, Richard Mihigo, the WHO program area manager for immunization and vaccine development, said that at least 20 percent of the African population will be vaccinated for free against the coronavirus disease through the global COVAX Facility.
