Macron says coronavirus vaccine must be public property

Any vaccine against the new coronavirus must be considered a “global public good,” French President Emmanuel Macron said at a pledging conference for international efforts to develop the medicine.

The vaccine should be “given to the entire planet by the organisation we choose,” Macron said.

He warned that the world is in a “race against time” to save lives.

“Faced with COVID-19, ‘everyone for themselves’ would be a major mistake,” Macron warned.

“We can only come out the other side of this together,” he added.

Macron promises 500 million euros (536 million dollars) to help fund the vaccine effort.

This is in addition to ramped-up funding for the World Health Organisation, while Germany meanwhile offers 525 million.