What is Vaccine Nationalism? Here is the Detailed Knowledge for the UPSC Exam

The UPSC examination is the most esteemed exam for testing the overall capabilities of the candidate to be posted to the honorable positions in the country. This exam has questions from each part of the country. You could be asked anything from the syllabus or maybe out of it. You must be prepared for everything to answer. All the candidates must have the habit of reading newspapers and gathering everyday information. There is a section to answer from current affairs. The most relevant and jiggling news is Corona.

Almost everyone is struggling with this pathetic disease in most countries. If you are wondering, what is vaccine nationalism? Here is the destination for your answer. Take a thorough read of this article to understand every bit of knowledge about this exclusive and essential topic. This topic is really important for all the people and foremostly to the aspirant of the UPSC exam to precisely understand and determine the nation’s situation for battling the virus. Check out the information.

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What is Vaccine Nationalism?

Vaccine nationalism is a term given to the act of securing the doses of vaccines for the citizens and people of one’s country by its government for the healthy environment in the nation. It is done by prioritizing the domestic markets of a country so that the vaccine is available for the residents of one country and then for the others. This term came in 2020 when the corona pandemic was creating havoc on humankind. It has destroyed the physical, mental, and psychological state of every well-being.

All the countries are approaching vaccine manufacturers to provide it to the people. The rulers of the nation are reaching the vaccine makers even before its final trials. Vaccines are a much-needed accessory for all human beings now. The development of vaccines for the preventive measures of the population is also known as vaccine nationalism. It is carried out by each country and their natives to dominate a peaceful and healthier environment in their state.

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Vaccine Nationalism – Facts to Know for UPSC

This is a very crucial topic for all the candidates for the UPSC exam. The emergency of buying and making the vaccines for the prevention of the citizens has led to the World Health Organization (WHO) warning that nations that hoard possible Covid-19 vaccines while excluding others would deepen the pandemic. “We need to prevent vaccine nationalism. Sharing finite supplies strategically and globally is actually in each country’s national interest.” said WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

In 2020, due to the increasingly vicious situation for the virus, WHO in coalition with the Epidemic Preparedness Innovations and Gavi has the decision to come out with a facility called Covax Facility. This facility aims to procure at least two billion doses of Covid-19 vaccines by the end of the year 2021 for deployment and distribution mainly in the low- and middle-income countries. This was done to protect several COVID-attacked nations.

Vaccine Nationalism – Facts for UPSC

This term is not new to the people. A similar situation was raised at the time of the year 2009 during the H1N1 flu pandemic. The flu was attacking the people disdainfully. At that time, Australia was the first and only country to come up with a vaccine. It blocked exports for many countries but some of the wealthiest countries made pre-purchase agreements with several pharmaceutical companies for the vaccine and took it. The US alone obtained the right to buy 600,000 doses.

This time for COVID, the United Kingdom, Japan, the United States, and the European Union have spent tens of billions of dollars on deals with vaccine front runners such as Johnson & Johnson, AstraZeneca Plc and Pfizer Inc,  even before their effectiveness was proven. These acts were only done to acknowledge the harmful effects of this deadly virus.

The purchasing of vaccines has become a game of numbers and figures. If you see, the US has already agreed to buy some 800 million doses from six drug makers, and the UK 280 million from five.

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Government of India

The government of India also was trying very hard to get the vaccines for the nation. There are people, pharmaceuticals, and medical organizations that are working day and night to prepare the vaccine for the citizens of the nation. Patanjali, having a big name in India has tried to come up with an effective dose. India was badly affected by the sudden outbreak of the virus. Most of the people were admitted to the hospitals and dying regularly.

Vaccines were the major concern for the honourable Prime Minister. It was decided that India will make its vaccine to fight COVID. The media of India worked tremendously hard to inform the people adequately. It was challenging for developing countries like India to reduce the spread of misinformation and guide the people to take precautions. Media has shown the power of being the fourth pillar of democracy in the country. India has come up with its vaccine at the end of 2020.

Drawbacks of Vaccine Nationalism

This is quite interesting that vaccine nationalism being against global public health principles had no definite provisions to stop in the countries. There are no rules in international laws that prevent pre-purchase agreements. The major drawback of it is that it drives the countries at a disadvantage of resources and bargaining. If a country with resources will buy the vaccines then there will be nothing left for the countries with perhaps, a larger number of COVID cases. This will certainly disrupt the global economy and health status.

It was stated by Reuters, Seth Berkley, chief executive of the GAVI alliance, “If you were to try to vaccinate the entire US, (and) the entire EU, for example, with two doses of vaccine – then you’d get to about 1.7 billion doses. And if that is the available number of doses, there’s not a lot left for others. If a handful or even 30 or 40 countries have vaccines, but more than 150 others don’t, then the epidemic will rage there”.

Alternative for Vaccine Nationalism

The basic alternative for avoiding vaccine nationalism is a collaboration among the countries. It is achieved through the WHO because the organization backed the COVAX Facility mechanism. This decision is appreciated by more than 170 countries and about 90 low- and middle-income countries and 80 fully self-financing countries. The countries that join the initiative are assured of a supply of vaccines whenever they become successful. Furthermore, the nations will get assured of the vaccine supplies to protect at least 20 percent of their populations. You must be aware of all these facts for your UPSC preparation. Read the article thoroughly to gather every bit of the information and add it to your UPSC notes.

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Conclusion

We hope that you have understood the importance of vaccines and got immense knowledge and information through this article. It is most important for everyone to be healthy and safe. This article is for enhancing your knowledge not only for the UPSC exam but also for your life. If you have anything to ask, you can comment below.

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