The fastest way to end the COVID-19 pandemic is to ensure vaccines are available to everyone, everywhere. But, people living in the world’s poorest countries are being left behind. Less than 1% of doses administered globally have gone to people in low-income countries while a handful of wealthy countries have enough vaccines to inoculate their entire populations and still have more than 1 billion doses left over. That includes 550 million excess doses secured by the US alone. And, without every country able to roll-out vaccinations, we could see twice as many deaths.
“Pandemica’s animated world animates a simple truth – that where you live shouldn’t determine whether you get these life-saving shots,” said Bono, lead singer, U2, and co-founder of ONE and (RED) . “Even while many of us still wait our turn, we need to commit to making sure that billions of people around the world aren’t left at the back of the line. It’s the right thing to do, obviously, but it’s also the only way out of this pandemic for all of us. If the vaccine isn’t everywhere, this pandemic isn’t going anywhere.”
“We’re all trapped in Pandemic, but only some can get out. This virus thrives on inequality, and right now billions of people around the world are seeing the promise of a vaccine, but not the opportunity to receive it,” said David Oyelowo, actor and mountaineer in Pandemic. “We must step up and do what it takes to end this pandemic for everyone, everywhere.”
Gayle Smith, President and CEO of ONE, added, “This virus has waged war on the world, and we need to fight back with all we’ve got. Vaccine access isn’t just about what’s fair, it’s also about what’s smart – we can’t end a global pandemic until we stop the virus from spreading and mutating everywhere.”
To watch the Pandemic series and learn more on how you can use your voice to end the pandemic, go to www.one.org/pandemica and on the ONE Campaign’s YouTube channel. The episodes will be released in the US, Canada, the UK, Nigeria, South Africa, Senegal, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, and Italy. Episodes can be found subtitled or translated into French, German, Italian,
About The ONE Campaign
ONE is a bipartisan, global organization campaigning to end extreme poverty and preventable disease by 2030, so that everyone, everywhere can lead a life of dignity and opportunity. We urge governments to do more to fight extreme poverty and preventable disease, particularly in Africa and empower citizens to hold their governments to account.
