Colombian superstar Shakira tweeted at Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Monday calling for increased support for tests, vaccines, and treatments against COVID-19, specifically to ensure an equitable response worldwide.
"PM @JustinTrudeau in 2017 we stood together w/ @glblctzn after Canada stepped up for global health," she wrote. "Now the world needs your leadership more than ever to help end #COVID19. Will you step up again to fund tests, treatments & vaccines?"
This call for action comes just days after Canadian star Justin Bieber urged Canadians to show their support for increased funding by tweeting at Trudeau.
Both Bieber and Shakira shared actions that Global Citizens can take to call for new funding in the international COVID-19 response.
Globally, more than 400,000 people have died from COVID-19. Leadership from countries like Canada will be essential in ensuring funding needs are met when developing tests, vaccines, and treatments for the world as a whole.
These health interventions must be made available for everyone, everywhere. The tools necessary to combat the pandemic need to be distributed equitably around the world, and they cannot be made accessible for only rich countries. If COVID-19 remains a threat anywhere, it remains a threat everywhere.
PM @JustinTrudeau 🇨🇦 in 2017 we stood together w/ @glblctzn after Canada stepped up for global health. Now the world needs your leadership more than ever to help end #COVID19. Will you step up again to fund tests, treatments & vaccines? #GlobalGoalUnite⭕ https://t.co/GDUjeTTOVHpic.twitter.com/se2HeLeMGh
— Shakira (@shakira) June 15, 2020
Many vital health organizations are already working to ensure an equitable delivery of anti-COVID-19 tools as and when they're developed, but they need more funding in order to continue with their life-saving work.
In Canada, Trudeau, alongside Canada's Finance Minister Bill Morneau, and other key cabinet members, will soon decide the ways in which COVID-19 relief funds will be distributed.
Global Citizen is calling on Canada to fund tests, treatments, vaccines, and urgent humanitarian aid through funding commitments to organizations like the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria; Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance; and the Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics (FIND), among others.
Global Citizen recently launched itsGlobal Goal: Unite for Our Futurecampaign, which will culminate with a pledging summit on June 27.
And in the lead up to the pledging event, Global Citizens can take action calling on Canada and other world leaders to step up and commit to funding an equitable response to COVID-19 worldwide.
The campaign aims to tackle the disproportionate impact COVID-19 has on marginalized communities — including people of color, people living in extreme poverty, and others facing discrimination.