Global EditionASIA 中文雙語Fran?ais
    Opinion
    Home / Opinion / From the Press

    On making COVID-19 vaccines a public good

    By John Gong | CGTN | Updated: 2021-01-26 09:17
    Share
    Share - WeChat
    A staff member at a packaging plant for COVID-19 inactivated vaccine products in the Beijing Biological Products Institute Co., Ltd. in Beijing, China, December 25, 2020. [Photo/Xinhua]

    Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a special address today at the virtual Davos Agenda event held by the World Economic Forum from Beijing, in which he talked about many of the well-known Chinese government policy positions in international politics, such as multilateralism, sustainability, open and inclusive society. In the COVID-19 age, what he said about China's stance on fighting the pandemic certainly attracts attention.

    First, some background, COVID-19 is still ravaging the globe, with at least three new, more deadly virus mutation developments in UK, South Africa and Brazil. Although China has fared much better so far, the country simply will not be immune to outbreaks in other parts of the world, as international flights and travels are still open. We have had some sporadic mini outbreaks here and there in some cities so far. But, overall, the nation's situation doesn't appear to be as urgent as that of other countries in terms of vaccination, even though China is at the forefront of developing effective vaccines. At least two vaccines have started their commercial rollout.

    As expected, President Xi committed to international cooperation in the fight against COVID-19 in his speech, in terms of sharing information, a stronger global response and cooperation in the research and development, production and distribution of vaccines. More importantly, he specifically said China will "make them (vaccines) public goods that are truly accessible and affordable to people in all countries."

    What is a public good? It is an economic term that describes a good or service that is provided without profit to all members of the society, either by the government or by a private individual or organization. In our context, the vaccines are to be provided to as many global citizens as possible, especially in developing countries, by the Chinese government.

    A public good typically has two distinct characteristics: nonexcludability and nonrivalrous consumption.

    Nonexcludability means that the cost of keeping nonpayers of the good from enjoying the benefit of the good is prohibitive. In our case, it could mean the difference between life and death. And clearly we want to save every life to the extent we can.

    Today's America, very much due to former President Donald Trump's ineptitude, has sadly recorded a death toll of over 400,000. But at least things are starting to turn around, with two venerable mRNA vaccines from two venerable American companies getting out. But in many developing countries in South America, Asia and Africa, people currently don't have access to vaccines or at least affordable vaccines. And we would like to help.

    A public good should also see nonrivalrous consumption in the sense that one consumer's usage doesn't preclude the use of another. A good example of a nonrivalrous public good is national defense, as adding one more immigrant to the population should not materially alter the national defense budget. But this is all theoretical. In the real world, vaccines are not necessarily nonrivalrous, as the production capacity is still somewhat limited, and one more vaccine inoculated overseas means one less here in China.

    Nevertheless, with China's relatively limited infection rate, we can afford to be a little bit less hungry for vaccines for now and let those overseas who need them most take it first. That is what I think is the reason President Xi mentioned the public good aspect of our precious vaccines. Ultimately, no matter where he resides, one more person vaccinated will marginally mitigate the chance of infecting one more person here in China.

    At this juncture, China could and should take on a bigger role in the battle against this vicious virus from a global perspective.

    When President Xi talks about accessible and affordable vaccines, he means not just making them available to Chinese citizens but also foreign citizens as well. That is the ultimate exercise of building a community with a shared future for mankind.

    John Gong is a professor at the University of International Business and Economics and a research fellow at the Academy of China Open Economy Studies at UIBE.

    Most Viewed in 24 Hours
    Top
    BACK TO THE TOP
    English
    Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.
    License for publishing multimedia online 0108263

    Registration Number: 130349
    FOLLOW US
    麻豆aⅴ精品无码一区二区| 中文字幕人成乱码在线观看| 亚洲日本中文字幕区| 无码国产伦一区二区三区视频| 少妇无码太爽了不卡视频在线看| 亚欧成人中文字幕一区| 国产精品亚韩精品无码a在线| 亚洲AV中文无码乱人伦在线视色| 人妻少妇无码视频在线| 蜜桃成人无码区免费视频网站| 炫硕日本一区二区三区综合区在线中文字幕 | 中文字幕日韩一区| 日产无码1区2区在线观看| 亚洲AV无码乱码国产麻豆| 亚洲欧美中文字幕| 中文字幕Av一区乱码| 18禁网站免费无遮挡无码中文| 亚洲av无码国产精品夜色午夜| 自拍中文精品无码| 欧美日韩中文字幕久久久不卡| 中文字幕乱码一区二区免费| 精品无码久久久久久久久久| 久久精品国产亚洲AV无码麻豆| 亚洲精品无码不卡在线播HE| 中文字幕不卡亚洲| 中文字幕在线无码一区| 亚洲国产综合精品中文字幕| 亚洲激情中文字幕| 人妻精品久久久久中文字幕69 | 人妻AV中出无码内射| 日韩亚洲欧美中文高清在线| 中文字幕亚洲综合小综合在线| 免费无码一区二区| 中文字幕精品无码一区二区| 亚洲成av人片在线观看天堂无码 | 精品无码免费专区毛片| 精品久久久久久无码不卡 | 亚洲综合无码精品一区二区三区 | 日韩一本之道一区中文字幕| 中文字幕国产精品| 亚洲一区二区三区在线观看精品中文 |