Arachu Castro on Vaccine Nationalism and Latin America

The Latin America Advisor’s latest video features Arachu Castro of Tulane University, who spoke with editor Gene Kuleta on June 23 about the potential for “vaccine nationalism,” or the concern that wealthy countries could seek to prioritize their own populations in immunizing against Covid-19 through means such as export bans, potentially delaying access to the vaccine in Latin America and the Caribbean.

No nation in the region was listed among the World Health Organization’s top 15 countries in the world most actively pursuing a vaccine for Covid-19, according to data cited in a recent Wall Street Journal report. Pharmaceutical company executives told the newspaper they are bracing for export bans on future coronavirus vaccines, a move that could have profound implications for citizens in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Since the interview, Brazil’s government announced that it had reached a deal with pharmaceutical maker AstraZeneca and Oxford University to produce a Covid-19 vaccine that is in the testing phase. Brazil’s government is investing $127 million in the initiative. Still, vaccine nationalism remains a concern for many in Latin America and the Caribbean.

View the latest Advisor Video here:

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