UN chief Guterres urges global efforts to close vaccine gap

Multi-pronged efforts must be made across countries to realize a more concerted global and multilateral response to the COVID-19 impact, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Saturday.

He made the remarks when addressing the opening ceremony of the International Finance Forum 2021 Spring Meetings via video on Saturday morning. The meeting was held in Beijing from Saturday to Sunday through both online and offline format.

Prompt efforts must be made to actively close the global vaccine gap, he said.

Guterres said countries must work together to produce and distribute sufficient vaccines for all, especially to reach low-income countries falling behind in pandemic response. COVAX, the global vaccine equity mechanism, will help to achieve such goal, he added.

He urged that stronger efforts must be rolled out in supporting developing countries facing debt crises pressure, and the international debt architecture must be strengthened.

In the end, Guterres called on urgent action toward the goal of achieving net zero emissions by mid-century, including efforts from the Nationally Determined Contributions of governments to the decarbonization plans of businesses and financial actors.

Developed countries must meet aid and climate finance commitments, including the $100 billion goal and new climate finance pledges for the period of 2021 to 2025, as it is essential for building trust and making the whole financial system low-carbon and climate-resilient, he said

He called on donors, development finance institutions and multilateral development banks to align their portfolios with the Paris Agreement and ensure that at least 50 percent of climate finance is for adaptation and resilience and support short-term actions for developing countries to finance the transition to renewable energy and climate-resilient development.

The International Finance Forum is an independent, nonprofit, nongovernmental international organization founded in Beijing in October 2003, and established by more than 20 key international organizations, including the UN, and a significant number of financial institutions and leaders. The IFF is a long-standing, high-level platform for dialogue and communications, and a research network in the financial realm.