Inequality in vaccine access

Covid equity: Activists demanding for an agreement to waive patent protections for Covid-19 vaccines in Geneva on Nov 30, 2021. — AFP

JUST as the world appeared to be limping back to life from the devastating effects of Covid-19 and its myriad strains, a new, perhaps more deadly, variant has thrown nations around the world into a state of panic. Described by the World Health Organisation as a “variant of concern”, the Omicron could prove more contagious than earlier strains, pushing many countries to close their borders.

It remains to be seen how effective the existing vaccines will be in providing protection against the fast-mutating virus. The new variant has struck at a time when scientists had made significant progress in developing vaccines that could treat the infection as we know it. In the case of the new strain, there are concerns that Omicron could evade antibodies.