CORONAVIRUS

Spain wants 70% of world's population fully vaccinated by mid-2022

The Spanish Minister of Health, Carolina Darias. Photo: La Moncloa/File photo.

"It means saving lives and economic recovery," said the Minister of Health in Rome at the Joint Meeting of G20 Health and Finance ministers

Spain wants 70% of the world population to be fully vaccinated by mid-2022.

During her speech at the Joint Meeting of Ministers of Health and Finance of the G20 being held in Rome, the Spanish Minister of Health Carolina Darias said that states have "a political and moral obligation to meet the global vaccination objectives of the World Health Organization ".

Darias recalled how in countries like Spain, with about 90% of people over 12 years of age with a complete vaccination schedule, they have proven that a successful vaccination also contributes to accelerating economic recovery.

"We are, at the same time, at the top of the rankings for national vaccination, GDP growth and solidarity vaccination," stressed the Minister of Health.

To regain "the long-awaited normalcy" as soon as possible, the Spanish minister has encouraged all G20 countries to continue insisting on their vaccination campaigns against Covid-19.

"It means saving lives and economic recovery," she emphasized.

Lessons from the pandemic

Among the lessons that the Covid-19 pandemic has left, the Minister of Health highlighted the relevance of States in the face of global challenges and the importance of strengthening public health systems. Darias stressed the importance of having universal health coverage

On the other hand, the minister called for the strengthening of the role of the World Health Organization (WHO) in the architecture of global health.

Along the same lines, she asked to advance in the 'One Health' approach, given the interconnection between human, animal and environmental health. She also proposed to address the social determinants of health, since "health is transversal and transcends its own ambit."