Iran Press/ Iran News: At a press conference on Thursday night, António Guterres called for further support from developed nations, saying: "Millions of children are in danger of missing life-saving vaccines. Remittances are in sharp decline, as are flows of foreign direct investment. Poverty could rise by 500 million people – the first increase in three decades."
Guterres said the tools to deal with the virus “must be available to everyone, everywhere”, as he called for a global relief package amounting to at least 10 percent of the global economy.
“I am particularly worried about the lack of sufficient solidarity with developing countries - both in equipping them to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, which risks spreading like wildfire, and to address the dramatic economic and social impacts,” he said.
According to Euronews, there are currently around 3.3 million confirmed cases worldwide and more than 234,000 deaths.
Earlier this week, the UN humanitarian chief Mark Lowcock said a $90 billion package could provide income support, food, and health response to the pandemic for 700 million of the world’s most vulnerable people. This would amount to 1 percent of the $8 trillion stimulus package the 20 richest countries have put in place to safeguard the global economy, he said.
Lowcock said around two-thirds of this amount could come from institutions such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.
In this regard, the United Nations has already launched a $2 billion appeal for vulnerable and conflict-torn countries in the Middle East, Asia, Africa, and South America. That appeal has received a little over $1 billion in one month.
Lowcock said: "I continue to advocate a global relief package amounting to a double-digit percentage of the global economy which means at least 10 percent."
"Most developed countries can do this with their own resources, and some are doing it. But developing countries need massive and urgent support," Lowcock emphasized.
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