ECOSOC President H.E. Munir Akram,

Excellencies,

Distinguished Delegates,

We are haunted today by the daunting task to ensure vaccines for all, as we re­ witness a new spate of national lockdowns more than a year since the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded.

The Philippines remains resolute in championing a policy of ensuring universal, fair, equitable, and timely access to COVID-19 vaccines as long-term solutions to building back better, amid the emergence of new variants and the global scarcity that has been challenging vaccine rollouts in some countries.

It has been clearer, as it has always been, that #OnlyTogether can we end this pandemic especially now that we have begun to have the scientific capacity to do so.

The Philippines calls on the international community to reinforce our greater global solidarities and uphold our collective commitment; and to further intensify its cooperation to address COVID-19's multidimensional challenges.

Indeed, no one is safe unless everyone is safe. But ultimately, if we are to win this battle and prevent the virus from mutating in the most desolate and harshest of conditions, we must faithfully fulfill our collective duties and act on our common humanity to end this brutal war that has already taken so much from us.

Mr. President,

We have reached global consensus and committed before the whole world at the UNGA Special Session on COVID-19 held in December 2020-- COVID-19 vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics especially those developed using public funds and collaborative efforts, are "global public goods" that must be made accessible and affordable for all.

The Philippines fully supports and commits to this, as much as it fully aligns with the UN Secretary-General's call for a Global Vaccination Plan so that vaccines reach every developing and least developed country without any further delay.

We are committed to the World Health Organization, as well as to the COVAX Facility/COVAX Advance Market Commitment and the ASEAN COVID-19 Response, with the Philippines pledging US$100,000 to each despite the travails of its own national response.

We join the UN Secretary-General in lamenting the unfortunate state of global COVID-19 vaccination, and fully align with the course of action of ASEAN, the Non­ Aligned Movement, the G77 and other like-minded Member States.^[1]

Hoarding the limited vaccines does not serve anyone's interests and only hurts everyone and the global response. Similar transgressions run contrary to solidarities reached multilaterally^[2] that emphasized the importance of collective action.

Mr. President,

If we renege on our commitments, and if we do not include our most vulnerable sectors in our responses, we also risk failing an inclusive post-pandemic recovery that leaves no one behind.

The Philippines calls on Member States to include women and migrant workers, especially those working in the frontlines of the pandemic response, and to include them in the national immunization strategies of all governments.  Women and migrants are disproportionately exposed to the health risks posed by the pandemic, yet they play critical roles in weathering the crisis.

We also need to address the extremely urgent needs of low- and middle-income countries,^[3] and bolster support and funding to multilateral initiatives, notably the COVAX Facility, such that it could continue delivering on its targets of 2 billion vaccine doses to all countries by the end of 2021.

At the historic occasion of the 75th anniversary of the United Nations, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte cautioned, that if any country is excluded by reason of poverty or strategic unimportance, this gross injustice will haunt the world for a long time and will completely discredit the values upon which the United Nations was founded.

May no further injustice haunt us, as we continue the global fight towards ending this pandemic.

Thank you