Joanna Rea, Director of Advocacy at the UK Committee for UNICEF (UNICEF UK) said:  

“The UK Committee for UNICEF (UNICEF UK) was involved in the making of tonight’s BBC Panorama special: “Why Aren’t We Vaccinating The World?”. We want to thank BBC Panorama for shining a spotlight on the vastly unequal access to vaccines in low-income countries which is ultimately hindering the world’s recovery from this pandemic.  

“Today the UK Government announced an end to pandemic restrictions, with over 90% of people having had at least one vaccine dose. By contrast, just 1 in 8 people in low-income countries have received one COVID-19 vaccine dose, while health services are being pushed to breaking point. As long as vaccination rates remain low, COVID-19 can mutate, health systems will struggle and children will continue to pay the price.  

“UNICEF is leading on the most complex roll out of vaccines in history working with COVAX partners to ensure vaccines get from port to arms – but we can’t do it alone.  

“We urge the UK Government to urgently accelerate the delivery of the remainder of their promised 100m doses and ensure that all donated doses have a minimum 10-week shelf life. We also need to see adequate funding for the international COVID-19 response, including vaccine delivery, training, testing and treatments. Only then can we hope to end this pandemic.