Wealthy nation backing for a $50bn (£35bn) mass global vaccination drive could provide a $9tn boost to the world economy, the head of the International Monetary Fund has said. Georgieva said the IMF estimated the cost of the three-point plan at $50bn – of which the G20 group of developed and emerging market economy countries were expected to find $22bn. A further $15bn was available from Covid-19 facilities set up by multilateral development banks, leaving a shortfall of $13bn that the IMF is hoping for rich countries to cover. Kirsty McNeill, Save the Children’s director of policy and campaigns, said: “The question isn’t whether rich countries can afford to fund a fair rollout of Covid-19 vaccines, but whether they can afford not to. “For just the price of a chocolate bar a week per citizen, rich countries can stave off huge economic losses resulting from prolonging the pandemic.

Source: The Guardian May 21, 2021 12:22 UTC