The United States is considering establishing a center to manufacture vaccines for Latin America

Washington, November 8 (EFE). – The United States is evaluating assistance in establishing a vaccine manufacturing center for Latin America that will allow it to manufacture more doses on the continent, and wants to support a project that seeks to do the same in West Africa, official source.

These projects could be part of the infrastructure plan with which the United States wants to counteract China’s advance, which Washington plans to present probably next January and which will be called “Building Back Better for the World”.

In a conference call with a small group of media outlets, including Efe, a senior US official provided clues about projects the White House is considering funding in Latin America, the Caribbean, Africa, the Indian Ocean, and the Pacific under the G7’s backing.

“There are a series of projects in solar, hydraulic and geothermal energy (that we can develop), and we have had many conversations in both Ecuador and Colombia about the possibility of establishing a vaccine manufacturing center for Latin America,” the official explained.

The source, who asked not to be identified, did not give details of how this potential manufacturing hub would operate, but explained that it was discussed during a tour of Latin America by Dalip Singh, President Joe’s deputy national security adviser, in late September. Biden.

Singh visited Colombia, Ecuador, and Panama to hear the ideas of the leaders of those countries and begin to formulate a plan for the White House; And last week he also traveled to Senegal and Ghana to do the same in that African region.

“In each of the five countries that we have visited so far, we have come up with at least ten projects” that can be developed under the new initiative, the official said.

This “does not mean that 50 projects will be launched in those five countries in January,” but the list will likely be shortened and the US will launch its new initiative with “between five and ten projects that will serve as evidence” of what the initiative might mean, the source added.

The official said that the Biden government has another tour related to the initiative planned for the end of the year in Asia, and also wants to schedule a trip to Central America, although no date has been set for that yet.

The source added that the initial projects of the initiative will be formally identified during the G7 meeting in December, when the UK will hand over the presidency of the group to Germany.

The United States’ future plan is expected to mobilize private capital to drive projects in four areas: climate, health security, digital technology, and gender equality. EFE

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