Global Vaccine Timeline Stretches Beyond 2023

A new report by the Economist Intelligence Unit shows that depending on where you live, the road to national inoculation protection against COVID-19 might still be a long one. The report shows that in many locations it will take years before a majority of the population has received the vaccine.

While major economies in Latin America are expected to achieve widespread coverage by mid-2022, the picture looks bleaker in Asia. Most emerging economies there are expected to take until the end of next year or even longer to achieve the feat. Exceptions are China, Mongolia, South Korea, Cambodia, Singapore and Malaysia.

Even in one of the region’s most advanced economies, vaccinations are going slower than elsewhere. Japan is projected to reach 60 percent of vaccine coverage among its population only by the end of next year. The continent where vaccinations are expected to progress slowest is Africa.

Most European nations as well as the U.S., Canada, Israel and some Gulf states are also on a fast vaccination trajectory, according to the EIU. The analysts expect the global cost of not reaching 60 percent of vaccinations among the population by mid-2022 to amount up to $2.3 trillion between 2022 and 2025.