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World Health Organization officials are holding a press conference on Friday to inform the public about the coronavirus outbreak, which has infected more than 97.6 million people worldwide.
Albert Bourla, CEO of PfizerThe company, which makes one of the Covid-19 vaccines approved in the US and Europe, is expected to work with WHO representatives during the virtual meeting. Dr. Seth Berkley, CEO of the Gavi public-private vaccination partnership, and Henrietta Fore, Executive Director of UNICEF, will also attend the briefing.
Earlier this week, WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned that the world was on the verge of “catastrophic moral failure” when the available doses of Covid-19 vaccines are not fairly distributed around the world. He added that the discovery of several transmissible strains of the virus in different parts of the world increases the urgency of the vaccine’s introduction.
“It is not right for younger, healthier adults in rich countries to be vaccinated in front of health workers and older people in poorer countries,” he said on Monday. “There will be enough vaccine for everyone, but right now we need to work together as a global family to set priorities [those] most at risk of serious illness and death in all countries. “
Last year, WHO, in collaboration with Gavi and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, set up the COVAX facility to ensure equitable access to vaccines for every country in the world. It aims to deliver 2 billion doses of safe and effective vaccines by the end of 2021.
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This article originally appeared on www.cnbc.com
