New platform launched recently PAHO to ease severe COVID-19 vaccine shortage in Latin America and the Caribbean

A new study executed by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has found that, with the COVID-19 pandemic receding in much of Latin America, the export sector in the region has begun to see a significant improvement in business.

According to the IDB study, more than 50 per cent of exporting firms are expecting an increase in international demand over the next three months. Based on the survey findings, most of the respondents stated that they were expecting to see a 57 per cent jump in foreign demand over the coming year, up from 36 per cent in 2020.

The study also found a 35 per cent increase in export volume in the first quarter of 2021. Latin America is known for mineral exports. However, these days, an increasing number of exporting firms are eager to adopt environmentally friendly measures, saying that will facilitate their insertion into global value chains.

Commenting on the study, Fabrizio Opertti, manager of the IDB’s Integration and Trade Sector explained that, “it’s encouraging to see that in the second year of the pandemic, companies recovered their export performance and anticipate significant trade improvements in 2022″.

The survey showed that Latin American exporters want their country to have more liberal trade agreements with other countries, particularly the United States.

Unlike other sectors, exporting firms in the region have received assistance from their governments to mitigate the impact of the pandemic. Opertti adds that, “it’s also worth noting that government assistance to cope with the negative effects of the pandemic has increased according to the firms”.  

New COVID vaccine platform

A new COVID-19 vaccine platform for Latin America and the Caribbean was recently launched by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) to ease the severe vaccine shortages and safeguard more people in the region by producing inoculations within the region.

PAHO Director Carissa Etienne announced the launch of the Regional Platform to Advance the Manufacturing of COVID-19 Vaccines and other Health Technologies in the Americas, describing as an initiative that will “coordinate across sectors – health, science and technology and industry – to strengthen their capacity to produce new technologies”.

The UN official explained the need for the platform, saying, “limited [global] production andunequal distribution of vaccines in the face of staggering demand hinder our COVID response”.

So far, only about 23 per cent of people in the region have been fully vaccinated, and in many countries, coverage is much lower.

The platform will support collaboration across States and agencies, applying existing regional bio-manufacturing capacity to produce COVID-19 jabs as well as other medical technologies. The principle is that manufacture should benefit the entire region, with regional pharmaceutical production and vaccine distribution to all countries by PAHO’s Revolving Fund.