Denmark receives Chinese COVID vaccines, to be administered to UN peacekeepers

Denmark on Monday, 20 Spetember received a consignment of Sinopharm developed COVID-19 vaccines as a part of China's donation for United Nations Peacekeeping personnel. Earlier in May, Chinese President Xi Jinping-led administration had pledged 300,000 vaccine doses to the peacekeeping forces, with priorities given to those fighting in Africa. "China attaches great importance to the safety and security of peacekeepers” and the donation “is a further step to make China’s vaccines a global public good, and also a demonstration of China’s firm and continuous support to the UN and multilateralism,” Chinese mission had said back in May. 

Notably, the donation handover ceremony between both the parties was held virtually last Friday. During the ceremony, Zhang Maoyu, deputy head of the China International Development Cooperation Agency, reiterated that the soldiers in Africa would be prioritised. According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, the country has already delivered around 80 million vaccine doses to more than 100 nations, mostly developing, since August. 

Earlier this year, India received acolodates for sending a consignment of COVID-19 vaccine doses to Denmark that will be administered to UN peacekeeping personnel. Indian Foreign Minister Dr S Jaishankar took to Twitter to inform about the delivery of “Made-in-India” vaccine doses to UN peacekeeping forces. India has delivered COVID-19 vaccine doses to several countries in the last few days, including Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar, Nepal, and the Maldives. 

Africa accelerates COVID-19 vaccination 

This comes as experts, last week, said at a webinar on 'Accelerating COVID Vaccinations in Africa' that well-off countries should abandon vaccine nationalism, as it is leading to supply shortages and hindering attempts to contain the COVID-19 pandemic in the continent, reported Xinhua News Agency. The Brookings Institution, a Washington-based organisation, convened the webinar. Notably, vaccine nationalism arises when governments get into arrangements with pharmaceutical companies to give vaccines to their own populations before they are available to other countries. Speaking at the event, the African Union's special envoy for the African Medicines Agency, Michel Sidibe, emphasised that wealthier countries must cease hoarding vaccines, which has been unhelpful to the pandemic fight. Sidibe pointed out that Africa's fight against the pandemic has been hampered by vaccine nationalism and also stressed the importance of vaccine equity in preventing the emergence of new coronavirus strains, accelerating recovery, and bolstering the resilience of Africa's public health institutions. 

(With inputs from AP)

(Image: AP)