COVID-19 vaccine may be ready by year-end, says Chief of WHO

Oct. 7: World Health Organization (WHO) director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Tuesday said that a vaccine against coronavirus (COVID-19) may be ready by year-end. The comments from the WHO chief came even as drug-makers and scientists all over the world are racing against time to develop a safe, effective vaccine against COVID-19.

“We will need vaccines and there is hope that by the end of this year we may have a vaccine. There is hope,” Tedros said in final remarks to the WHO’s Executive Board, without elaborating. According to a report, nine experimental COVID-19 vaccines in various stages of clinical testing are part of the WHO’s COVAX global vaccine facility that aims to distribute 2 billion doses by the end of 2021. A total of 172 countries have joined the WHO’s COVAX initiative. However, some countries, including the US, Russia, and China have declined to join the facility to secure their own vaccines.

The head of the WHO also called for solidarity and political commitment by all leaders to ensure equal distribution of vaccines when they become available.