Giving Compass' Take:

• While there is a tremendous amount of collaborative work from scientists across the globe to develop a vaccine for COVID-19,  it may not be available for everyone. 

• How can donors play a role in ensuring that the treatment is more accessible?

• Read more about funding the development of a COVID-19 vaccine. 

All eyes have been on scientists since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, as they mount an unprecedented global collaborative effort to develop treatments and vaccines to stop the outbreak.

While countries closed their borders, scientists have worked across them — sharing data and early results, working towards a collective goal in a global effort that has reportedly never been seen before.

This collective effort means that the international drive to find tests, therapeutics — which are essentially treatments to help people recover from COVID-19 — and vaccines that can inoculate people against it, is incredibly complex and requires a lot of funding. Hundreds of organizations, both private and public, are involved.

But while this extraordinary, collaborative work is going on globally to find a cure for COVID-19, it’s not necessarily guaranteed that successful tests, treatments, or vaccines will be accessible to everyone.

There is a real risk of treatments as they become available being marketed at a high price, prioritizing access to people and countries that can afford it.

Some of the biggest economies in the world are competing to develop an effective vaccine — with more than 220 vaccines in development around the world. But 49% of these are in North America, according to the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness and Innovations (CEPI).

Whether you’re in South Africa or South Korea, Latin America or Europe, or anywhere else in the world, you can join us by taking action to raise your voice and urge world leaders to help fund the fight against COVID-19.

Read the full article about collective effort to take action against COVID-19 by Helen Lock at Global Citizen.