Biden administration ships 9 million doses of vaccine to Africa and 2 million more around the world
“The president has been clear from the start: If we want to protect the American people and our economy, we have to beat the virus everywhere. That means we have to make sure the rest of the world is in place,” he said. back of the vaccinated world,” Zient is expected to say. for comments. “And under President Biden’s leadership, the United States is leading.”
The Biden administration will also push international partners to play a stronger role in supporting global vaccine efforts.
“From supporting media campaigns to build trust about vaccines, to funding vaccinations on the front lines – we’re leading the global immunization effort. And we’re calling for it. the rest of the world moves on and joins us,” Zient is expected to say.
Friday’s move comes as the Biden administration faces criticism over recent travel restrictions imposed on eight African countries amid concerns about the Omicron variant of the virus. coronavirus. Several countries with travel bans still have no confirmed Omicron cases. United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres likened the widespread travel bans to “racist travel behaviour”.
Zient will also highlight the Biden administration’s progress on global immunization efforts to date – noting a commitment of 1.2 billion doses worldwide and 280 million doses donated and shipped to 110 countries. , a number that authorities say exceeds the number of doses donated and shipped by all other countries combined. The 11 million doses shipped Friday also exceeded donations by all but seven other countries throughout the pandemic, according to the administration.
