(MENAFN- Swissinfo)
The life science analytics firm Airfinity estimates that 1.4 billion COVID vaccine doses may have gone to waste worldwide since they were rolled out at the end of 2020. Hans Christian Plambeck/laif
Swiss warehouses are bulging with unused COVID-19 vaccine doses, and more are on the way. But millions of out-of-date vials are being destroyed amid stagnating demand and complex negotiations over donating them to developing countries.
This content was published on March 11, 2023 March 11, 2023 minutes Born in London, Simon is a multimedia journalist who has worked for since 2006. He speaks French, German and Spanish and focuses on science, technology and innovation issues.
more from this author | english department My specialty is telling stories, and decoding what happens in Switzerland and the world from accumulated data and statistics. An expatriate in Switzerland for several years, I have also worked as a multimedia journalist for the Swiss national broadcaster.
more from this author | french department Simon Bradley (text), Pauline Turuban (graphics) “The Swiss ordered way too much from the beginning - about four times as much as the population at one stage. And they just continued to put in orders,” Patrick Durisch, a health policy expert at the Swiss NGO Public Eye, tells SWI swissinfo.ch.
Worldwide, 13.3 billion doses of Covid-19 vaccines have been administered. In Switzerland, about 70% of the population have had at least one Covid dose, a figure that has barely moved over the past year. Only 11.5% got a booster jab in the past six months.
External Content The reasons behind the vaccine fatigue, and pandemic weariness more generally, are multiple. They certainly include stronger immunity in the community, exhaustion about public health measures and better awareness about the dangers of Covid.
“The coronavirus has also lost some of its shock value in the public's perception,” the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) told Swiss public radio, SRF.
But despite the fact that the pandemic is in the rear-view mirror for many in Switzerland, Covid-19 remains a public health emergency of international concern, the World Health Organization's highest form of alert. Vaccines and treatments, alongside mitigation measures, have helped bring the pandemic under control. But the Covid crisis is at a transition point that continues to need 'careful management”, the health agency saidexternal link on January 30.
As demand for Covid vaccines has collapsed, Switzerland, like many rich countries that over-ordered, finds itself with a massive stockpile on its hands. Millions of unused vials that have expired have already been destroyed. It is likely that millions more will end up in the trash this year, as they cannot be easily sold or donated to poorer nations to whom they were promised.
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