World must declare vaccine public good, says Bangladesh’s Sheikh Hasina

Global leaders must declare Covid-19 vaccines as a public good, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said at the Qatar Economic Forum, as the South Asian nation struggles to curb a fresh surge in infections.

"We need strong global cooperation to overcome this difficult time,” Hasina said in recorded remarks telecast Tuesday. "We firmly believe that the Covid-19 vaccines should be declared as a global public good, and the developing countries and LDCs that have capacity be given the necessary support to produce the vaccines.” Inoculations have slowed to a crawl after neighboring India halted exports, forcing Bangladesh to enforce new lockdowns and turn to China and Russia for supplies. Only about 8.6% of its eligible population -- comprising people aged 40 years or more -- is fully vaccinated.