RIYADH — The Saudi G20 Presidency welcomed the launch of “Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator”, a landmark, global and timely collaboration for the accelerated development, production and equitable access to new COVID-19 tools.

The ACT Accelerator initiative will be a global platform for action to enhance connections and leverage interdependencies for collective partnership, problem solving, mobilizing and guiding investments, and driving equitable access for new COVID-19 diagnostics, therapeutics and vaccines.

Finance Minister Mohammed Al Jadaan participated in the launch event of the ACT Accelerator initiative and highlighted that the international community is still facing extraordinary uncertainty about the depth and duration of this health crisis and emphasized the urgency to come together and cooperate to face this global challenge together.

He added: “The Saudi G20 Presidency took the lead and worked with its partners and relevant organizations to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. The G20 will continue reinforcing global cooperation on all fronts, and most importantly, on closing the immediate health financing gap.”

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, as the chair of the G20 in 2020, pledged $500 million to support such global efforts and called on all countries, non-governmental organizations, philanthropies, and the private sector to take part in the global efforts to close the required financing gap in order to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

The required gap in fund is estimated to be around $8 billion according to the Global Preparedness Monitoring Board (GPMB).

Head of states and other key political leaders as well as principals of multilateral, global health and development institutions participated in the launch event.

Global community, health actors and leaders supporting this landmark collaboration will convene again in a pledging event on May 4, 2020. More information about the G20, including the Presidency Agenda and full program of events, can be found at www.g20.org. — SPA