The world is short of 11 billion doses of the Coronavirus vaccine. This is the number we need according to the head of the World Health Organization in order to vaccinate at least 70% of the world’s population by mid-2022 and truly end the pandemic.
At the G7 summit of global leaders, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the doses would come both directly and through the international COVAX program. The Group of Seven wealthy nations have pledged over 1 billion coronavirus vaccine doses for poorer nations.
Indian PM Narendra Modi attended the G7 Summit via video conference on Saturday. India, invited as a guest country along with South Africa, Australia and South Korea, will be participating virtually, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressing three breakout sessions over Saturday and Sunday.
PM Modi sought G7's support for a proposal moved at WTO by India, South Africa for patent waiver on Covid related technologies. Modi explained India's successful use of open source digital tools for contact tracing and vaccine management.
The highlights of the G7 Summit included discussions between the world leaders on ending the pandemic and preparing for the future by driving an intensified international effort, starting immediately, to vaccinate the world by getting as many safe vaccines to as many people as possible as fast as possible.
The leaders agreed upon reinvigorating economies by advancing recovery plans that build on the $12 trillion of support we have put in place during the pandemic. The central idea is to support economies for as long as is necessary, shifting the focus of our support from crisis response to promoting growth into the future, with plans that create jobs, invest in infrastructure, drive innovation, support people, and level up so that no place or person, irrespective of age, ethnicity or gender is left behind.
G7 also marked a discussion on how we can secure our future prosperity by championing freer, fairer trade within a reformed trading system, a more resilient global economy, and a fairer global tax system that reverses the race to the bottom. This will also be followed by efforts to protect Earth by supporting a green revolution that creates jobs, cuts emissions and seeks to limit the rise in global temperatures to 1.5 degrees.
“We commit to net zero no later than 2050, halving our collective emissions over the two decades to 2030, increasing and improving climate finance by 2025; and to conserve or protect at least 30 percent of our land and oceans by 2030,” a statement read.
“We will do this in a way that values the individual and promotes equality, especially gender equality, including by supporting a target to get 40 million more girls into education and with at least $2¾ billion for the Global Partnership for Education. We shall seek to advance this open agenda in collaboration with other countries and within the multilateral rules-based system,” the leaders signed on.
In concluding remarks, the leaders agreed that In Cornwall they have revitalised the G7 partnership. “As we do so we look forward to joining with others to ensure we build back better, in particular at the G20 Summit, COP26, and CBD15 and the UN General Assembly, and reiterate our support for the holding of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020 in a safe and secure manner as a symbol of global unity in overcoming Covid-19,” a statement from G7 said.
