On 9 February 2022, in Lyon, France, the Parliamentary Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Zanda Kalniņa-Lukaševica, took part in the Joint Conference of the European Union (EU) Foreign Ministers and Health Ministers on global health.
The conference considered the possibilities for the EU to support middle and low-income countries in response to the pandemic, including by sharing vaccines and upscaling the vaccine manufacturing capacity in Africa.
The Parliamentary Secretary underlined in the discussion that global health was one of prerequisites to sustainable development, and therefore, commitment to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals was more relevant than ever. In an exchange of views on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on growth, Zanda Kalniņa-Lukaševica highlighted the increasing challenges and inequality in the world.
Every effort must be made to overcome the pandemic, and the accessibility of vaccines also have a central role to play in our partner countries, the Parliamentary Secretary noted. In addition, the participants accentuated one of the main challenges in the fight against the pandemic – vaccine hesitancy, fostered by disinformation; therefore, raising awareness of the need for vaccination is of particular importance.
Zanda Kalniņa-Lukaševica reaffirmed Latvia’s support for the collective efforts of the EU and its Member States in a Team Europe spirit and she pledged Latvia intention to continue donating vaccines to partner countries both bilaterally and through the COVAX Facility. Latvia will also continue supporting partner countries in the field of media literacy and the fight against disinformation.
The Member States’ ministers were unanimous that the greatest challenge was the low vaccination coverage in Africa, where only 10 per cent of population have been vaccinated; consequently, it is of vital importance to support Africa with vaccines while enabling its vaccination environment and reinforcing vaccine manufacturing capacity. Next week, at the European Union-African Union Summit, it is expected to reach an agreement on special support for the African countries in the health sector so as to build their resilience and bolster economic growth.
Background information
More than 50 per cent of the global population have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, and the EU has ensured the availability of a third of all the vaccine doses. By 1 February 2022, the EU and its Member States together (Team Europe) had donated 406 million vaccine doses, and 312 million of those have been delivered. 82 per cent of donations have taken place through the COVAX Facility, and 18 per cent – bilaterally.
By 1 February 2022, Latvia had donated 473,070 doses of vaccines to the following countries: Albania (30,000), Benin (80,000), Egypt (115,000), Georgia (83,070), Kenya (55,200), Moldova (30,000), Tunisia (49,800), and Vietnam (30,000). Donations are being planned to Ukraine (20,000), Moldova (80,000), and Bangladesh (50,000).
Latvia has transferred 715,200 vaccine doses for donation via the COVAX scheme, the first part of which has been sent to Indonesia, and further donations are also being planned.