EU Bloc Gets Flake Over Less Vaccine Procurement Numbers
EU Bloc Gets Flake: As well-oiled world economies comes in terms with failed administrative decisions, European Union is also facing similar music. The bloc is now being criticized for mismanagement of procurement of the Covid-19 vaccine candidate, a part of which was developed in Germany itself.
EU bloc is falling short of the approved Pfizer-BioNtech vaccine candidate that provides 97percent efficacy. However, there has been fresh scare over the newly mutating virus. The Covid-19 virus is mutating and new strains have started to enter some parts of Europe. UK claims it has been able to control the spread; but the virus has started to find its way into other countries outside Europe too.
Attacking the European Commission for a slow vaccine procurement process is Markus Söder, the leader of Germany’s Christian Social Union. Making a public statement he said, “The time factor is crucial. If Israel, the U.S. or the U.K. are far ahead of us in vaccination, they will also benefit economically. The question of how we get through corona economically is closely related to how quickly we get through with vaccination.”
Söder’s statement could win him brownie points as he runs the race for the chancellor job in national elections scheduled for next September. But he has a valid point as he points out that “It is difficult to explain that a very good vaccine is developed in Germany but is vaccinated more quickly elsewhere.”
EU bloc took extensively long to give approvals to the vaccine candidate. This could have just been a step of caution misunderstood. Undeniably, the pandemic has the political and leadership capabilities of many nations to test. Many countries were not prepared to handle a pandemic like situation that devoured most of the year 2020. Many are still learning from their mistakes; EU is not going to be an exception to this process of evolution.
But lack of vaccines and a new strain of mutation could mean lockdown in Europe again, that is going to hit non-essential businesses and extend till end of January 2021.
