Vaccine distribution: how Argentina did in the distribution of acquired doses around the world

The image of the “vaccine desert” mentioned by Alberto Fernández on the national network last week has figures that explain it. At least for Argentina. Our country has only received 7% of the 65,470,000 doses acquired to date, according to an official report released by the government. This percentage is, for example, much lower than that of Chile, which has already received 30% (10,925,276 doses) of the 36 million agreed for a population of 19 million inhabitants.

So far, with 4,880,355 doses delivered to Ezeiza, Argentina made 3,365,839 requests e immunized 6% of the population with one dose, and only 1.4% with both applications, according to the latest update this morning from the Public Vaccination Monitor.

On the other side of the mountain range, the trans-Andean country tops the ranking of countries that received the most doses compared to those they bought, with a percentage only exceeded by Israel. This country already received 39% (9,257,019 doses) of the total 24 million vaccines acquired for its 8.6 million inhabitants.

United States, meanwhile, had so far 135,846,665 doses, 11% of 1,200 million vaccines that it has agreed to vaccinate its 331 million citizens. The Joe Biden administration could fully immunize all residents of the United States twice.

From the analysis of the figures provided in the report, it appears that at the regional level our country, along with Brazil, Mexico and Colombia, are the countries that have acquired the most doses, in absolute numbers. But in relation to its population, the government of Jair Bolsonaro has acquired nearly three times more doses than Brazilian citizens: 464 million doses for 212 million inhabitants. Mexico, with 128 million inhabitants, bought 271 million doses, while Colombia acquired 73 million for 50 million inhabitants.

Until today, it was not known how many vaccines the government Alberto Fernández had acquired thanks to the contracts signed with the various laboratories and countries. Of these 65.4 million doses agreed – a figure that would be enough to vaccinate 72% of the Argentine population with the two doses – 56,400,000 correspond to bilateral contracts and 9,070,000 others to the COVAX fund..

Considering that the complete vaccination requires two doses, the full salaries acquired in the case of Argentina total 32,735,000, according to the report prepared by the government.

The truth is that the amount agreed by the national executive power is far from what the Frente de Todos administration actually received. So far only 2,290,195 component one and 1,010,160 component 2 doses from Russian Sputnik V have arrived, for a total of 3,300,355; 580,000 additional doses of British Covishield, from the AstraZéneca / Oxford laboratory, manufactured in India; and one million from Sinopharm, from China.

Argentina’s vaccine shortage was justified by the president when he told the national channel that there are only 18 countries left with 88% of vaccines, and the rest of the world with only 12%. These data were included in the power point distributed by the government today.

“We have contracts with several laboratories, except with Pfizer. In addition to Sputnik and the Chinese Sinopharm and Sinovac, we speak (in the laboratory) Moderna and AstraZéneca. If contracts are not respected, we go above and beyond. They sell to whomever they want and deliver to whomever they want. They have the production problem, ”admitted an official with an office at Casa Rosada.

This morning, the ninth flight of Aerolineas Argentinas left for Russia to bring more doses of the Sputnik V vaccine, its landing in Ezeiza is scheduled for tomorrow at 5:30 p.m. On the other hand, official sources have confirmed that a COVAX program shipment of 218,000 new doses produced by AstraZéneca should arrive “in the next few days”, and by the end of next week, an additional 3 million from Sinopharm. could arrive, in the largest joint shipment since the start of the vaccination campaign, on three flights of Aerolínes Argentinas. Today, the Nation’s Minister of Health, Carla Vizzotti, announced that the National Administration of Drugs and Medical Technology (ANMAT) is recommending its emergency use in the group of people over 60 years of age.

However, The government is confident that more vaccines will arrive in the coming weeks to comply with Alberto Fernández’s latest announcement to complete the vaccination of the population at risk by the end of April. But they are unlikely to give specific dates after previous failed announcements. “We believe vaccine delivery will start to normalize. We have permanent talks and the information is that they will arrive, from governments and laboratories, with which Argentina has signed contracts. But until they are loaded onto the plane and on their way to Argentina, we are not going to give the concrete figures, ”said an official who walks the corridors of the Casa Rosada. He even assures that during the last call of the president with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Poutine, the Argentinian president addressed to him a sort of “complaint” for the delay in the shipments of the 20 million Sputnik V vaccines promised, which arrived in account- drops. .

Biggest dose buyers

Which countries have signed agreements to guarantee the greatest quantity of doses produced in the world? The United States – home to 4.25% of the world’s population – currently purchases 15% of available and committed vaccines. It has thus been guaranteed contracts for well over double its population..

It is followed by United Kingdom, with 5.4% of world vaccine production, for a population that represents 0.87% of the world population. Canada, in the meantime, it has signed contracts to provide 4.7% of the vaccines on the market, intended for a certain number of citizens of its territory, ie 0.48% of the world population. The two countries were also guaranteed to vaccinate more than double their population. CanadaFor example, with a population of 37,742,157 citizens, it has made deals to purchase 379 million vaccines, nine times the size of the inhabitants of its territory.

The European Union as a whole, he bought 24.5% of the vaccines, with a population of the old continent not reaching 6% of the total population. The rest of the world – which represents 88% of the world’s population – has acquired the remaining 50.4%.

Besides the United States, United Kingdom and Canada, Italy, Spain, France, Australia and Japan have also guaranteed contracts that far exceed the vaccination of their population.

Italy, with 60 million inhabitants, purchased 409 million doses, twice as many vaccines as it would take to vaccinate its entire population with the two doses.

Interactive visualizations: Daniela Czibener

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