WHO works to spread COVID vaccine technology to more nations

GENEVA (AP) — The World Health Organization is creating a global training center to help poorer countries make vaccines, antibodies and cancer treatments using the messenger RNA technology used to make COVID-19 vaccines. At a briefing Wednesday, the U.N. health agency said the new hub will be based in South Korea and will share mRNA technology being developed by WHO and partners in South Africa, where scientists are already working to recreate the COVID-19 vaccine made by Moderna Inc. It’s the first time WHO has supported efforts to reverse-engineer a commercially-sold vaccine. That means the U.N. health agency is making an end run around the pharmaceutical industry, which has largely prioritized rich countries over poor in both sales and manufacturing.