JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has urged the Group of Seven countries to help finance the World Health Organization s programme to boost COVID-19 testing, diagnostics and vaccines, the presidency said on Sunday. Ramaphosa, who has joined a summit of the club of rich democracies in England and addressed them on Saturday, said the G7 countries, which together account for more than half of global output, should support the Access to COVID-19 Tools Accelerator to plug the $16.8 billion funding gap for this year. We need to address the substantial financing gap for tests, treatments, critical supplies like oxygen and the health systems that enable testing, treatment and vaccination, Ramaphosa said in the presidency statement. The World Health Organization’s ACT Accelerator programme for global COVID-19 treatments aims to fast-track production and ensure equitable access to tests, treatments, and vaccines in the fight against COVID-19. If all G7 countries
TOKYO (Reuters) - A mass vaccination centre in Tokyo will begin booking COVID-19 shots for people under 65 years old from Saturday, the Sankei Newspaper reported on Thursday, as Japan ramps up efforts to inoculate people before the 2020 Olympics open next month. Japan began vaccinating frontline health workers and elderly people in February, but the slow pace compared with other major industrialised nations has spurred calls for the Tokyo Games to be delayed again or cancelled. Many Japanese are worried the country is unprepared to host tens of thousands of foreign athletes and Olympic officials as its healthcare system struggles with a fourth wave of infections. The Tokyo vaccination centre will also begin taking appointments by telephone for the first time from Saturday, in addition to online bookings in a bid to encourage more people to use the centre, the Sankei reported. A spokeswoman at the Ministry of Defence, which operates the site, declined to comment on the telephone and did