Opinion | Why the smartest Covid-19 solutions may not be the most rational
- The paradox is we need consensus on how to rebuild the world but rational solutions often fail with emotional, social conflict
- The smartest solutions are those that people will accept: simple to understand, look fair, and work
As vaccination drives roll out across the world, there is increasing awareness that vaccines are not a silver bullet for resolving the global pandemic. First, there are many people who do not like vaccinations, and as long as Covid-19 lurks, the vaccinated will not be 100 per cent protected.
Second, the vaccines are being very unfairly distributed. As public-health expert Gavin Yamey observed in Nature magazine earlier this week:
“As I write this, 191 million vaccination shots against Covid-19 have been administered; more than three quarters were given in just 10 nations that account for 60 per cent of the global gross domestic product. In some 130 nations with 2.5 billion people, not a single shot has been administered. High-income countries represent only 16 per cent of the world’s population, but they have purchased more than half of all Covid-19 vaccine doses.”
Given the complexity, let us draw some simple, common-sense lessons on what to do next.
09:50
SCMP Explains: What's the difference between the major Covid-19 vaccines?