Archbishop Rino Fisichella, president of the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization, called for prioritizing vaccines for the poorest.
At a press conference at the Vatican on June 14, Archbishop Fisichella presented Pope Francis’ message for the World Day of the Poor, which falls on November 14, 2021.
In this context, he insisted on getting vaccines to the poor.
According to Fisichella, getting people vaccinated must be a common objective in this period of recovery. He stressed the importance of delivering the vaccine to the “poorest and most marginalized.” With vaccines, the most vulnerable people will also be able to “get back on track” to a normal life.
The Vatican has set a precedent for this with its own vaccination campaign. Since January 2021, the Holy See has vaccinated almost 1,500 homeless and poor people. On the occasion of his name day on April 23, Pope Francis visited people who were receiving their second dose of the vaccine.
The pontiff has also repeatedly called for lifting of patents to ensure more universal access to vaccines. This would enable poorer countries to produce the vaccines locally, instead of buying them from the original producers, or waiting to receive them from the World Health Organization.
The World Bank estimates that the pandemic has plunged up to 115 million people into extreme poverty in 2020. This figure could rise to 150 million by the end of this year.
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