Effort must be sustained over time.
A video-conference summit was held Monday among world leaders, who have together pledged billions of euros for research to find a vaccine against the new coronavirus. At the same time they warned that it is just the start of an effort that must be sustained over time to beat the disease.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said that the 7.5 billion euros ($8.2 billion) target being sought to help fund a vaccine, treatments and better tests for the disease would be merely a “down payment” on the tools that will be needed to fight the virus. He said, “To reach everyone, everywhere, we likely need five times that amount.”
“The reality is that we will have to learn to live with the virus until and unless we develop a vaccine,” said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. “More will be needed. So today is only the start of a global pledging marathon.”
The U.S. did not participate in the conference or fund-raising program because it remains the world’s largest donor to global health initiatives, even after the suspension of funding to the WHO. Many of the programs being discussed at the conference were already funded by the U.S.
As the Lord Leads, Pray with Us…
- For the leaders of global nations as they step up with funding assistance, research and other participation in finding a vaccine against the COVID-19 virus.
- For researchers across the world who are already working on trials, including those out of Oxford University in England.
Sources: AP, The Guardian, Newsmax
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