Cote Blog 4

 Brian Cote

Professor Shirk

POLS 170

20 April 2022

Blog 4

Upon our class discussion of the state of global health, it was mentioned how poorer economic states were often ignored or disadvantaged when it came to having a voice in the international community regarding medical research and discourse. I agreed with this argument, however, recently it seems as if the tide is turning in favor of a more unified and equal international medical field. The Biden Administration is now hosting a second Global COVID-19 Summit, and has invited the Caribbean community, known as CARICOM, led by Belize, the G7 group led by Germany, the African Union led by Senegal, and the G20 group led by Indonesia. While I do recognize that the summit is being led by the United States, which is a powerful first-world state, I do believe that the representation in this summit is a massive step in the right direction. Senegal, Indonesia, and Belize are all non-first-world states, and they hold a majority of the seats in this meeting about the current global health crisis. I believe that the summit being set up this way is no mistake, as by having a majority of the seats be given to poorer nations, who also represent larger groups of poorer nations, it portrays a show of unity and a sign that the whole world, regardless of development status, needs to band together to fight the spread of COVID because it is a threat to every human being. In addition, since some of the topics in the second Global COVID-19 Summit involve vaccine distribution and widespread availability of testing, a country like Senegal, who represents various African nations that disproportionately lack advanced medical infrastructure and proper medical resources due to lack of funds, have a lot more to fight for and say when compared to Germany, who represents the G7 nations who are much better off with preventative COVID procedures due to their sizeable economies. I consider this type of representation a benefit to the international community when it comes to medical concerns because the world cannot commit to a healthier future if every state is not supported and given proper resources to properly combat any health risks that might arise in the future, regardless of the question of money. The Biden Administration suitably addressed the representation issue that plagues the international medical community and I hope that other nations strive to achieve this type of inclusion going forward.


https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/04/18/joint-statement-between-the-united-states-belize-germany-indonesia-and-senegal-on-the-announcement-of-the-second-global-covid-19-summit/


Comments

  1. UnknownApril 20, 2022 at 2:04 PM

    Great blog post! I didn't know that the Biden Administration has taken initiative in improving the medical field particularly for poorer economic states. I agree that the US is setting a good example for other nations to follow. Hopefully It is a project that live long enough to influence other powerful nations. However, various states around the world, particularly poorer states may be unwillingly to receive representation. Due to lack of trust and etc. But you are right this is definitely a step forward.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Remi AdefioyeApril 20, 2022 at 2:05 PM

      This comment has been removed by the author.

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    2. Remi AdefioyeApril 20, 2022 at 2:06 PM

      That was me ^ i don't know why it keeps saving me as "unknown"

      Delete

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