The afternoon had nearly entered MysticLand. Scorch and other Warrior Tribe students had had an early class in the MysticLand Elementia School. After grabbing breakfast, Scorch returned to the dorm room for a little rest.
When she entered the room, Scorch could hear soft snores. Someone was still in bed. A curious Scorch looked into everyone’s beds. But no, the beds were empty. Suddenly, a funny sight caught Scorch’s eye. Verum was fast asleep with her head resting on her crystal ball.
Scorch giggled and shook her friend awake, “Verum, it’s almost noon! Wake up!”
Verum opened her eyes and yawned. Rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, she said, “I got caught up in world-gazing last night. I didn’t even realize when and where I fell asleep.”
Verum stood up and stretched her body. She said, “I’ll check if there’s any breakfast. My tummy is rumbling with hunger.”
Right at that moment, her crystal ball began making the familiar humming sound. Verum sighed and said, “A few minutes delay shouldn’t be a problem. What’s the news, crystal ball?”
Before it revealed the news story to Verum, her crystal ball posed a rather tricky question. It asked, ‘When will the Covid-19 pandemic end?’
Verum scratched her head, deep in thought. She said, “I can’t say for sure, crystal ball.”
“Oh, last Sunday, World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus discussed the end of the pandemic during his address at the World Health Summit in Berlin, Germany,” said Verum, a few minutes later.
“What did he say?” said Scorch.
“Dr. Tedros said that the pandemic will end when the world chooses to end it,” said Verum, “We have the tools for this: effective public health tools and effective medical tools. But we haven’t used the tools well.”
“For the pandemic to end, the G20 countries (a forum of a group of twenty countries to ensure economic cooperation) must actively participate in the COVAX program and the African Vaccine Acquisition Trust (AVAT),” added Verum, “COVAX aims to supply Covid vaccines to all countries around the world. You see, many of the G20 countries have vaccinated 40% of their population. Many mid and low-income countries are struggling to vaccinate their people.”
“So, the G20 countries must lend these countries a helping hand,” said Scorch.