In many countries, a large proportion of the population have received vaccination against COVID-19.
But this is far from the case across the globe, with billions still waiting on vaccines.
This is why vaccine inequity matters – and the steps being taken to ensure equal access.
With more than 5,000 COVID-19 cases and 100 deaths a day, Bulgaria is fast approaching another peak in infections.
But as the death toll mounts and the healthcare system becomes overstrained, most Bulgarians are still refusing COVID-19 vaccines.
Bulgaria has the lowest rate of vaccinations in the 27-nation European Union, with just 21.8 percent of its population inoculated amid an abundant supply of vaccines.
The health ministry’s campaign to encourage vaccination, including a raffle for a smartwatch, which he called “a joke”, has failed to convince him.
Vaccine hesitancy has cost Bulgaria thousands of lives.
Since the mass vaccination campaign started in March, about 11,000 people died of coronavirus.
The WHO has earlier warned that a new COVID-19 “variant of interest” named Mu, also known by its scientific name as B.1.621.
The health organisation said it closely monitors the new variant’s spread.
The mu SARS-CoV-2 strain first appeared in Colombia in January, as a “variant of interest.”
Since then, there have been “sporadic reports” of cases and outbreaks in South America and Europe.
Variants of interest have genetic changes that affect virus characteristics including transmissibility, disease severity and immune escape.
According to the WHO, variants of interest differ from variants of concern. The later can cause a decrease in effectiveness of public health measures, vaccines or therapeutics.
