Gates suggested that countries should move more quickly on vaccination in the future.
CNBC reported that billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates said COVID-19 risks have decreased, but it is almost certain that we will see another pandemic.
Gates told the news channel that large parts of the global population are protected against Coronavirus. The severity of the infection has diminished with the Omicron variant, he said.
He cautioned, however, “We’ll have another pandemic”. “The next pandemic will be caused by a different pathogen.”
Gates said that if investments in medical technology were made now, the world would be in a better position to combat future pandemics.
It doesn’t cost that much to be prepared for the next pandemic, Gates told CNBC. “It’s not like climate change. Yes, if we’re rational, we’ll spot it early the next time.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMOxiKDKz8I
The billionaire, who is the co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, told the news channel that it is too late now to meet the goal of vaccinating 70 percent of the world’s population by the middle of this year.
Presently, about 63.7 percent people around the world have received one vaccine dose, according to The New York Times.
Gates said that in the future, countries should move quicker on vaccination.
“Next time we should try and make it, instead of two years, we should make it more like six months,” he told CNBC.
Gates’ foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, has been a part of the global effort to distribute COVID-19 vaccines.
The foundation and United Kingdom based-charity Wellcome Trust have united to provide $300 million to the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, which is part of the COVAX program.
COVAX aims to speed up the development and manufacturing of COVID-19 vaccines and ensure that all countries have fair and equitable access to them.