The Indian campaign to export Covid-19 vaccines globally is helping to increase regional stockpiles of the jab
The number of Covid-19 cases in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region crossed 4,979,332 on 1 February 2021, according to Worldometers data collated by MEED.
The six GCC countries together account for 24.6 per cent (1,225,658) of all regional cases, while Iran’s 1,417,999 infections comprise 28.5 per cent of the 4.9 million cases.
Select restrictions are being reimposed across parts of the GCC as infections continue to grow and global vaccine shortages are recorded.
Amid these shortages, a new form of vaccine diplomacy, led by India, has emerged in recent weeks, with several Middle Eastern countries benefiting from longstanding intergovernmental ties.