NGO Calls for End to Intellectual Property Waiver on COVID-19 Technology

Ugo Aliogo

The Nigeria Network of NGOs (NNNGOs) 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.

The NGO advised the government on the need to invest in public healthcare and ensure that women and other vulnerable groups have equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines.

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.

He noted that two years after the pandemic, Africa and other developing countries continued to see disparities in access to vaccines, which he said had prolonged the pandemic for Africa and deepened existing inequalities across the continent.

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.

Oluseyi said: “Large numbers of people in low-income countries face the virus unprotected and millions of people would still be alive today if they had had access to a vaccine. Big pharmaceutical corporations have been given free rein to patronise profits ahead of vaccine equality.

“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.

“Reports indicate that 54 per cent of all deaths caused by COVID-19 have been in low and lower middle-income countries, where 10.6 million people have died while 2.7 million people are estimated to have died in high income countries.

“Urgently agree to and implement a global roadmap to deliver the World Health Organisation (WHO) goal of fully vaccinating 70 percent of people by mid-2022, and beyond this ensure sustained, timely and equitable access worldwide to COVID-19 vaccines, treatments, tests and other medical technologies, including all effective and safe next-generation COVID-19 vaccines and medical technologies.”