Working together and immediately to stop Omicron: The agenda of the G7 health ministers, urgently recalled by London yesterday, was the incumbent president. In and around South Africa, it was feared that cooperation between the world’s seven largest economies would focus on the coordinated closing of borders. It did not happen like this. In his speech, Minister Roberto Speranza emphasized that the identification of the new alternative in the southern region of Africa underscores the urgent need to make more efforts to vaccinate the populations of the most vulnerable countries. Flasks, of course, but not just those. The minister made it clear that donating doses is not enough, but we must tangibly support those who do not have organized and widespread health services like ours. It is essential to ensure that the vaccines given are actually administered, and to do so in the most fragile countries the coordinating role of the United Nations and the World Health Organization will be needed. An expanded approach from Speranza, included in the Summit Outcome Document: Against the new alternative, defined as highly transmissible, Ministers recognized the strategic importance of ensuring access to vaccines also by providing operational assistance, fulfilling donation commitments and addressing vaccine misinformation, as well as supporting research and development . Dosing supply, but also support in logistics and materials (from syringes that are in short supply to hardware for the cold chain).

Europe divided

So developed countries renewed their commitment to ensuring vaccines for the most vulnerable countries (the billion vials promised by the G7 in June) without giving up the pressure at home on third doses. With pioneering Great Britain, which yesterday allowed a booster dose for all adults just three months after the recall. Good intentions have been emphasized. G7 has managed to deliver fewer than 300 million doses so far compared to the billion pledged in June, and Italy has provided 3 million out of 45 – he tells Courier service Rossella Michio, President of Emergencies, an NGO part of the People’s Vaccine Alliance -. Rich countries have accounted for 95% of the vaccines produced and with the rush to the third doses we do not expect an increase in generosity. Don’t solve the problem with donations. A change of pace will be needed: a temporary suspension of patents would make it possible to increase production even in low-income countries. It was proposed by South Africa itself at the World Trade Organization, and more than 100 countries supported it, but Europe is divided.

From: There are no reports regarding the Omicron variant yet

The G7 concluded by praising the exemplary work of South Africa in identifying an alternative and warning others. Even Joe Biden praised Pretoria’s transparency, and was quick to notify the alternative. The appreciation comes on the heels of President Ramaphosa’s resentment at the punishment inflicted on his country, reclusive for discovering the new alternative. The suspension of flights from South Africa imposed by many countries also appears ineffective because Omicron is already in half the world: from the UK to Australia, and from Canada to Hong Kong via Israel. It was tracked in 10 European countries: Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands, as well as Austria, Portugal, Spain and Sweden. So far, no deaths related to the variant have been reported, Omicron has reassured the WHO, and is asking to keep borders open. Sylvie Briand, director of the WHO’s Epidemiological Risk Management Division, explained that the new variable has been described as worrisome because all teams around the world are getting the most information because we don’t know much about it.