The Nigeria Network of NGOs has urged the federal government and stakeholders to call on Britain, Germany, the United States and France to stop blocking intellectual property waivers on all COVID-19 related technologies.
Speaking at a media briefing to mark the second anniversary of COVID-19 recently, the Executive Director, NNNGO, Oyebisi Oluseyi, said these would revolutionise global vaccine manufacturing, unlock the productive capacity needed to end the pandemic and build the scientific and industry networks needed to protect Africa and the rest of the world from future disease outbreaks.
According to a report released by Oxfam on March 3, 2022, while effective vaccines provide hope, their rollout has tipped, from a natural desire to protect citizens into nationalism, greed and self-interest. “Although, officially, the records show that the casualties of the pandemic were more in developed nations, the reality is that countries in the African continent recorded a major loss of lives due to the pandemic but lack of concrete data is likely why we may never have the figures to show a truer reflection of the pact of the pandemic on our continent.