POSITION PAPER

Committee: WHO

Portfolio: Ukraine

The COVID-19 pandemic is the defining global health crisis of our time and
the most excruciating health challenge mankind has ever faced since the
Spanish Flu. Since its emergence in Asia in 2019, the virus has aggressively
affected more than 134 million people across the world and has caused
more than 2.9 million deaths as yet.

Acknowledging the guidelines prescribed by the external panel of

experts convened by WHO, called the Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on
Immunization (SAGE) who are analyzing the results from clinical trials, along
with evidence on the disease, age groups affected, risk factors for disease,
programmatic use, and other information and are recommending whether and
how the vaccines should be used.

 The Ukrainian Government is working with the UNICEF and the WHO on
a public campaign to encourage people to get vaccinated. This campaign
is being carried on fully under the guidelines prescribed by the WHO so
as to educate the masses with the benefits and need of vaccination
against COVID 19, and also to eradicate the apprehensions of the falsely
propagated side effects of the vaccine.

 The government plans to have 50% of the population vaccinated in

2021–22 and has also taken up the required steps to ensure adequate
supply of vaccines for the citizens.

 On 1st October 2020, the Health Minister of Ukraine announced that

UAH 15 billion of the draft state budget shall have been allocated to the
purchase of COVID-19 vaccines in 2021 from two companies that were
then in the third phase of their trials.

 The government of Ukraine has, despite the hindrances brought about

by the Russian Federation, managed to ensure adequate supply of
 vaccines by collaborating with the WHO under the COVAX initiative and
procured the Novavax vaccine through it. Also, collaboration has been
made with the Serum Institute of India for the Oxford-AstraZeneca
vaccine. The government of Ukraine is also working out with China to
procure doses of the Sinovac vaccine.

 Ukraine fully endorses the COVAX initiative of the WHO that offers

 Doses for at least 20% of countries’ populations

 Diverse and actively managed portfolio of vaccines
 Vaccines delivered as soon as they are available
 End of the acute phase of the pandemic
 Rebuilding economies

 Politics in vaccination by nations:

Though the government of Ukraine has taken up all steps for mass
inoculation across the country, there is a serious nemesis trying to be
done by the rivals of the nation, namely the Russian Federation in
particular.

 First, Ukraine got caught up in the geopolitics of vaccine

distribution between Russia and the West, and struggled to get
hold of any doses. And now that Ukraine has managed to ensure
supply of the same for its citizens, Russia is constantly looking for
means to discourage vaccination in Ukraine by spreading
misinformation among the Ukrainians, particularly through the
means of social media.

 Ukraine is suffering from an “infodemic,” with social media

flooded with false narratives about the disease and vaccination,
typically being floated by the Russian Federation, which is leading
to mistrust of the vaccine among the Ukrainian population.

 It has also been established that the dissemination of the false claims
and unverified information against various other jabs such as Pfizer’s
BNT162 was aimed at popularizing the use of Russia’s Sputnik-V, all the
while undermining the public confidence in other vaccines, which makes
the claim made by Ukraine even more authentic and justifiable.
Urges all the nations to keep aside political and self profitability motives and
to work collectively and without hostility, for the benefit of the global
community to combat against this pervasive battle, of which no particular
nation, but mankind as a whole is the only and principal sufferer.

Recognizing that certain vaccines are showing up unusual side effects only in
a specific geographical region, while giving flawless results in the other, as
the case of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine which showed the side effect of
blood clot in most of Europe while giving hardly any room to unusual side
effects in Asia, thus proving the variance in working of the vaccines for
people belonging to different regions.

Bearing in mind that policies and initiatives on the issue of COVID 19

vaccination including those that refer to the equitable distribution of vaccines,
taking into account the feasibility of the global population, should cater to the
collective and specific needs of citizens of all countries, as to convalesce the
world from this deep wound and to eradicate the global pandemic in the least
possible time.

 Identifying the countries and agents spreading misinformation on

vaccination and its related side effects for the motives of political
advantage or self propaganda for their indigenous vaccine, whatsoever,
and stringent measures to be taken against them without further ado.

 Mandating a fixed amount of vaccines manufactured by all the vaccine

manufacturers, to be available to the WHO for the COVAX programme,
as to ensure adequate supply of vaccines to the poor and backward
countries as well.

 Conducting repeated trials of all the vaccines on individuals from

different geographical areas, as to establish the suitability of the
different vaccines for different geographical groups, in lieu of certain
vaccines’ unusual side effects turning up only in a specific geographical
community.