Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sabri Boukadoum, chaired, today Saturday, a ministerial meeting of the Peace and Security Council of the African Union, which dealt with the difficulties faced by the countries of the continent in obtaining vaccines against the emerging coronavirus and its implications for human security in Africa.
A press release issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the meeting discussed ways to address this problem in order to ensure that all African countries are provided with these vaccines and recover from the negative effects of the pandemic.
Incidentally, the participants appreciated Algeria’s initiative to hold this important meeting, expressing their “concern” about the serious imbalance in the distribution of vaccines at the global level and the failure to make them available to all countries in a fair and just manner, as is the case for the African continent that is experiencing a delay in the vaccination campaign against the Coronavirus.
According to the ministry’s communiqué, all the speakers confirmed that “this situation would prolong the pandemic, impede efforts to recover from its effects and complicate the negative repercussions threatening security and stability, especially in African countries that are experiencing crises and armed conflicts.”
The meeting concluded with a set of recommendations, during which the participants called for “the necessity of intensifying international cooperation and equitable sharing of vaccine doses through the COVAX mechanism, which needs more funding from high-income countries.”
The participants also urged to “raise the pace of vaccine production through technology and intellectual property sharing. In this regard, the participants praised the initiative aimed at exempting from some provisions of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, to expand vaccine production capabilities worldwide.
The participants called for “working on building and developing the capacities of African countries in the production of all types of vaccines to support health security in Africa and eliminate dependence abroad in the field of vaccines and medicines in general.”
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated, “Within the framework of its presidency of the Peace and Security Council of the African Union during the month of May, Algeria has scheduled important meetings to discuss the traditional and emerging risks that threaten security and peace in the continent, and this is in its belief in the capabilities of African countries in developing effective solutions to confront the complex challenges they face. Far from foreign interventions and maneuvers aimed at excluding the continental organization from participating in resolving conflicts and crises.
For reference, the meeting witnessed the participation of many foreign ministers of the member states of the Peace and Security Council of the African Union, as well as the Director-General of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, in the presence of high-level officials in the various bodies of the African Union, especially Michel Sidibé, the special envoy of the African Union to the African Medicines Agency.
