GENEVA/LONDON • Some 156 nations have joined a global scheme for fair distribution of future vaccines against Covid-19, an alliance led by the World Health Organisation (WHO) has said, but superpowers China and the United States did not sign up.

US President Donald Trump's government has already secured future supplies through bilateral deals, prompting accusations of selfish behaviour to the detriment of poor countries.

China, where the coronavirus outbreak began, was also missing from the list of 64 rich nations that joined the so-called Covax plan to deliver two billion vaccine doses round the world by the end of next year, prioritising healthcare workers and the vulnerable. But alliance officials said dialogue continued with Beijing.

The scheme would account for about two-thirds of the world population, according to the WHO and Gavi vaccine alliance, which on Monday published the list of signatories after a deadline for binding commitments expired last Friday.

Dozens of vaccines are in testing for the coronavirus, which has infected about 31 million people globally and killed nearly one million, a fifth of those in the US.

"Covax will give the world the largest and most diverse portfolio of vaccine candidates," WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a virtual briefing.

"This is not charity, it's in every country's best interest. We sink or we swim together... This is not just the right thing to do, it's the smart thing to do."

With some wealthier nations reticent over Covax, the plan has highlighted the challenge of distributing vaccines equitably around a world of haves and have-nots.

The vaccine alliance said it expected another 38 wealthy countries to join the initiative in the coming days.

REUTERS