UNICEF Ireland and Retail Excellence highlight importance of vaccinating everyone to avoid spread of variants and further disruption to business.
DUBLIN, 2 JULY 2021 – Retail Excellence has announced its support for an historic mission to vaccinate the world today as it joins an innovative UNICEF campaign rolling out in Ireland.
As new variants of COVID-19 emerge and threaten us all, UNICEF is re-imagining the way it works to help end the pandemic, and Retail Excellence is standing with them.
UNICEF’s Get a Vaccine Give a Vaccine campaign was launched by Goodwill Ambassador Liam Neeson last month, and now the UN agency is inviting supporters from business to join the movement, with Retail Excellence leading the way.
Retail Excellence is also calling on its 2,200 members to promote UNICEF Ireland’s campaign. The request is that once people get their vaccine, they give a vaccine and support the agency’s ongoing work on the largest vaccine procurement and supply operation ever seen.
Retail Excellence Managing Director, Duncan Graham is calling on all retailers to support the global vaccine effort: “As an open economy that is strongly dependent on international trade and efficient supply chains, Ireland must make a vigorous case in support of fair and equitable access to vaccines across the world. As businesses continue to reopen it is crucial that they be able to stay open.”
“Pharmacies now have a key role to play in the vaccination roll-out and we see an even greater need for Retail Excellence to take an outward-looking position on vaccine equity.”
UNICEF Ireland Executive Director Peter Power said: “COVID-19 has had a devastating impact on the lives of children and their families, as disrupted healthcare, education and childcare, family illness and potential loss of household income erode decades of progress. Restrictions on free movement and the socio-economic fallout of the crisis put children at heightened risk of abuse, neglect and violence. Some 150 million additional children have been plunged into poverty as a result of the pandemic. To correct course, we must ensure the equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccinations.”
As a global leader in vaccinations, UNICEF is working to ensure that all countries participating in the COVAX Facility (currently 190) have equitable access to 2 billion doses of the COVID-19 vaccine by the end of 2021. The COVAX Facility is a global effort led by ACT-A partners Gavi, WHO and CEPI to streamline procurement and aid equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines. More than 85 million vaccines have been delivered through this mechanism to date (June 23).
ENDS
Notes for editors:
About UNICEF
UNICEF works in the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. Across more than 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, to build a better world for everyone.
For more information about UNICEF and its work for every child, visit their website
Follow on Twitter and Facebook
About Get a Vaccine Give a Vaccine
UNICEF Ireland is encouraging everyone who gets vaccinated against COVID-19 to give a vaccine to someone in a developing nation. By joining the ‘Get a Vaccine – Give a Vaccine’ campaign you are helping UNICEF deliver two billion COVID-19 vaccines to the most vulnerable families, health workers and high-risk people on our planet.
Because no one is safe until we are all safe.
Donate here: https://www.unicef.ie/donate/get-a-vaccine-give-a-vaccine/#1
About COVAX
COVAX is co-led by CEPI, Gavi and WHO – working in partnership with UNICEF as key implementation partner, developed and developing country vaccine manufacturers, the World Bank, and others. It is the only global initiative that is working with governments and manufacturers to ensure COVID-19 vaccines are available worldwide to both higher-income and lower-income countries.
In collaboration with the PAHO Revolving Fund, UNICEF is leading efforts to procure and supply doses of COVID-19 vaccines for COVAX. In addition, UNICEF and WHO are working with governments around the clock to ensure that countries are ready to receive the vaccines, with appropriate cold chain equipment in place and health workers trained to dispense them.
UNICEF is also playing a lead role in efforts to foster trust in vaccines, delivering vaccine confidence communications and tracking and addressing misinformation around the world.
Click here for photos and videos available to press.
For more, contact:
Aedín Donnelly, Communications Manager, UNICEF Ireland, aedin@unicef.ie, 085 1395272
Julian Fleming on behalf of Retail Excellence, julian@gordonmrm.ie, +353-87-6915147
