The decision was adopted at a CARICOM meeting held on Monday to study a regional response to recent increased number of infections, hospitalizations and deaths from Covid-19, according to a statement.

Regarding the possibility of obtaining vaccine doses will be presented at the new regular session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) and at a planned Covid-19 Global Summit sponsored by the United States.

In both forums, CARICOM´s 15 member states will also speak out for a solution to financing issue and external debt sustainability, according to the statement.

During the meeting, heads of government warned about recent increased number of infections, hospitalizations and deaths from Covid-19 in Latin America and especially in the Caribbean, as 100,000 new positive cases have been reported since July.

The Caribbean has reported over 300,000 infected people and about 6,700 deaths since the outbreak of the pandemic in March 2020, said Dr. Joy St. John, executive director of the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA).

No country in the region is close to herd immunity and the higher incidence of mutations and variants forces vaccination rates to surge.

In this regard, CARICOM´s member states agreed to share the excess of vaccines, personal protective equipment and testing kits and also claim to the UN Covax mechanism ‘an exemption that would allow the reassignment of vaccine doses between member states.’

pgh/Pll/msm / vc