The Islamic Republic admitted to failing to promise vaccination, but is this a global problem?
Kianoush Jahanpour, spokesman for the Food and Drug Administration of Iran, claims that vaccinations in other parts of the world are also not progressing as expected.
Mr. Jahanpour says that delays in vaccination are a global problem, and dozens of countries, like Iran, are lagging behind in vaccination.
After Ayatollah Khamenei ordered a ban on the import of American and British vaccines, the Islamic Republic of Iran has received vaccines from China, Russia, Cuba, and India, which, according to official statistics, covers about 1.2 million people out of the country's 80 million population. However, the doses received are administered slowly due to the lack of proper infrastructure and proper planning.
The "Our World in Data" project, launched by the University of Oxford, has collected and collated vaccination data from government sources across countries.
According to these statistics, a total of more than 488 million doses (units) of vaccine have been administered worldwide, equivalent to 6.4 doses per 100 people.
The total vaccination rate per 100 people in Iran, however, is estimated at 0.15.
Israel has been vaccinating faster than any other country, administering 111 doses of the vaccine per 100 people. According to Reuters, Israel has vaccinated more than half of its population with two full doses of the vaccine.
In the United States, vaccination is also proceeding according to schedule. US President Joe Biden has said that enough vaccines will be available for all adults in the United States by the end of May this year.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that about 18 percent of American adults have received both doses of the vaccine. If this trend continues, more than 85 percent of the American population will be vaccinated by December.
Countries whose success was unexpected
Statistics show that in terms of total vaccinations per 100 people, the United Arab Emirates ranks second only to Israel, where about 60% of its population has received at least one dose of the vaccine.
Chile, which has been widely praised for its vaccination drive, came in third. The country began negotiating with vaccine manufacturers from around the world in January and signed contracts with almost every company that had a vaccine approved or close to being approved. Chile also volunteered to conduct clinical trials. The country's infrastructure for vaccination has also helped to ensure that the effort went smoothly.
Other countries that have been praised for their progress in vaccination include Serbia, which did not wait for other European countries to provide more than 11 million doses of vaccine from China and Russia for its population of 7 million. The country also signed contracts with other vaccine manufacturers, including Pfizer, from the very beginning.
Lower-income countries rely more on the World Health Organization's COVAX program, which was launched to distribute vaccines equitably around the world.
This program, of which Iran is a participant, aims to provide 2 billion doses of vaccine by the end of this year.
Source: Voice of America
