New Research Finds ‘Substantial’ Global Disparities in Covid-19 Vaccine Accessibility

Associate Professor in Spatial Data Science Dr Huanfa Chen (CASA, UCL) was among the research team, which brought together researchers from the University of Hong Kong, the University of Glasgow and Kyung Hee University (Seoul, South Korea). The team developed an innovative framework for analysing population data and Covid-19 vaccination locations at 1-km resolution. They determined vaccine accessibility across countries/regions by examining multiple metrics, including travel time, population coverage and a comprehensive accessibility index.

Their research confirmed that higher Covid-19 vaccination rates were achieved by countries with more equitable access. While in just over 24% of countries, 95% of their populations could access a vaccination site within 15 minutes, more than 70% of residents across the regions they surveyed had to travel more than an hour to reach their nearest vaccination location.

Accessibility correlated strongly with high GDP per capita, with high access being weighted in favour of higher-income countries and regions, though there were exceptions, including wealthy Luxembourg having limited accessibility to vaccines, while some lower-income regions had been able to deliver comprehensive access.  The researchers attributed this to healthcare infrastructure configuration and policy implementation, showing that economic factors did not have to be the sole determinant of vaccination outcomes.

Based on their analysis, the research team recommended additional focus in lower-income countries on geographic accessibility to vaccination, along with global health initiatives and the appointment of national public health officials in higher-income regions to target vaccine deserts and to ensure equitable vaccine access in future pandemics.

Research team

Principal investigator: 

Yanjia Cao, Department of Geography, University of Hong Kong

Co-investigators: 

• Tianyu Li (Department of Geography, University of Hong Kong) 
• Huanfa Chen (CASA, UCL) 
• Qunshan Zhao (Urban Big Data Centre, School of Social & Political Sciences, University of Glasgow)
• Jiashuo Sun (Department of Geography, The University of Hong Kong)
• Karen Ann Grépin (School of Public Health, University of Hong Kong Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine)
• Jeon-Young Kang (Department of Geography, Kyung Hee University)