With over four million cases, India currently accounts for 40% of the total COVID-19 cases across the world. On Monday, India saw a spike of 75,809 cases and recorded 1,133 deaths. Alarmingly, out of the 880,790 active cases, around half are concentrated in merely three states and ten cities. Maharashtra, with 236,208 active cases, has been one of the hotspots of the outbreak since the beginning, and currently, out of the ten most infected cities in the country, five are in Maharashtra. With the number of COVID-19 cases going from three million to four million in just thirteen days, India’s infection rate has surpassed that of both the United States and Brazil.
In response to the worrying surge in COVID-19 cases, Gerd Muller, Germany’s Development Minister, said that Germany intends to significantly expand its aid to India. He called the program “one of the largest coronavirus support measures in the world,” and said that Germany will donate 330,000 tests and 600,000 personal protective equipment worth around $ 17.8 million. Additionally, Germany also announced its decision to provide a loan of $544 million to India. Muller said, “This way, we are working together to ensure that food can be distributed to 800 million people and that bridging aid can be given to the 320 million people who have lost their jobs during the coronavirus crisis.”
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In other related developments, the World Health Organisation (WHO) and India are discussing India’s plans to join the COVAX vaccine initiative. Bruce Aylward, a senior WHO adviser, said, “India is certainly eligible, like all countries in the world, to be a part of the COVAX facility and discussions are ongoing in that regard.” He further noted, “We would welcome Indian participation … India has extensive experience [with vaccines].”
The COVID-19 Vaccine Global Access Facility (COVAX Facility) is a program co-led by Gavi, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), and WHO to ensure equitable supply of doses across the globe by helping countries buy and distribute the vaccines. The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), which is the world’s largest purchaser of vaccines across the world, announced last week that it will lead efforts to procure and supply doses of COVID-19 vaccines on behalf of the COVAX Facility. 172 countries have agreed to participate in the program. However, countries like the United States (US), which are developing their own vaccines using material procured through bilateral agreements, have refused to join the initiative.