The director of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), Carissa F. Etienne, warns that 75% of the population of Latin America and the Caribbean is not yet fully vaccinated against Covid-19 and, PAHO is accelerating its efforts to expand access to vaccines throughout the region.

"Three-quarters of the population of Latin America and the Caribbean has not been fully vaccinated," he said. “More than a third of the countries in our region have not yet vaccinated 20% of their population. And in some places, the coverage is much lower, ”he added.

According to Etienne, vaccination rates are below 20% in several Caribbean and South American countries, while coverage remains in the single digits in Central American nations such as Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua, he detailed. Meanwhile, in Haiti and Venezuela, the fragility of health systems and political challenges in these countries have further delayed immunizations against SARS-CoV-2. "Unfortunately, countries with high coverage are the exception in our region," she emphasized.

Etienne calculated that, in total, 540 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines must be supplied to ensure that all Latin American and Caribbean countries can protect at least 60% of their population. "Therefore, we must expand access to vaccines in our region, especially in the places furthest behind," he stressed.

In response to the vaccine shortage, PAHO has launched a new donation campaign. "We are working to draw the attention of developed countries to the urgent need to donate vaccines to Latin America and the Caribbean," she said.