The secretary general of the United Nations expressed concern over travel bans against southern African countries in a statement Monday, condemning it as “penalizing” Africa.
U.N. Secretary General António Guterres said countries should praise South Africa for detecting the new omicron variant instead of punishing them by prohibiting travel.
“I am now deeply concerned about the isolation of southern African countries due to new COVID-19 travel restrictions. I and others have long warned low vaccine rates are a breeding ground for variants,” Guterres said. “The people of Africa cannot be blamed for the immorally low level of vaccinations available in Africa — and they should not be penalized for identifying and sharing crucial science and health information with the world.”
UN SECRETARY-GENERAL CALLS OUT WEALTHY COUNTRIES FOR VACCINE ‘SELFISHNESS’
Guterres instead encouraged higher levels of testing for travelers, along with other “appropriate and truly effective measures.” He emphasized avoiding the risk of transmission.
Guterres’s comments come as the World Health Assembly hosts its three-day virtual meeting to create a “pandemic treaty,” which would include the rapid sharing of information on health crises. Another topic likely to be included is the sharing of resources to combat crises such as vaccines. Poorer countries, including those in Africa, have criticized First World countries during the pandemic for not supplying enough COVID-19 vaccines.
“No country can vaccinate its way out of the pandemic alone. The longer vaccine inequity persists, the more opportunity this virus has to spread and evolve in ways we cannot predict nor prevent. We are all in this together,” said Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the World Health Organization’s director general.
Ghebreyesus called omicron an example of why the world needs to pass a treaty to respond to pandemics.
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Six percent of Africa has been vaccinated against COVID-19 compared to 54% of Europe as of last week. The three-day meeting ends Wednesday, when countries will vote on creating an international response framework for future pandemics.
