JOHANNESBURG, South
Africa
The World Bank is preparing emergency financing to help about 30 African countries access COVID-19 vaccines, the global lender told Reuters, as the continent scrambles to secure doses and start immunizing vulnerable groups.
Only a handful of African governments have launched mass
vaccination campaigns, whereas some countries in wealthier parts of the world
have already administered millions of doses.
Many rely on the World Health Organization’s
vaccine-sharing scheme COVAX, which delivered its first doses last week with a
shipment to Ghana.
The World Bank said financing projects were being prepared
in African countries including the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia,
Niger, Mozambique, Tunisia, eSwatini, Rwanda and Senegal, without disclosing
the amount of support under discussion.
“The funds are available now, and for most African
countries, the financing would be on grant or highly concessional terms,” a
bank spokesperson said in response to questions.
Last month the World Bank approved financing of $5 million
from the International Development Association to provide Cape Verde with
vaccines.
“This is the first World Bank-financed operation in Africa
to support a country’s COVID-19 immunization plan and help with the purchase
and distribution of vaccines,” the spokesperson added.
Africa’s reported corona-virus death toll recently surpassed
100,000, a fraction of the fatalities reported on other continents, but is
rising fast as a second wave overwhelms hospitals.
African countries that have started vaccinating include
South Africa, Zimbabwe, Senegal, Morocco and Egypt.
Last week the African Union’s disease control body said the
continental bloc was backing calls for drug-makers to waive some intellectual
property rights on vaccines to speed up their roll-out to poorer countries.
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