Cuba Could Be The First Latin American Country To Make A Vaccine
By: JASON BEAUBIEN
Cubans line up to buy food in Havana on March 3. The island nation is working to develop a vaccine against COVID-19. If successful, the island nation hopes to produce 1 to 2 million doses a month.YAMIL LAGE / AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
Cuba has a dream — to have so much COVID-19 vaccine that not only could everyone on the island get immunized but Cuba would give it away to friends and allies around the world. There would be so many doses, Cuban officials would even offer free inoculations to tourists on arrival at the airport in Havana.
And that’s not just wishful thinking. Even as the island nation faces a devastating economic crisis, with people lining up for basic food necessities, scientists are developing multiple vaccine candidates. And at least one of them looks like a winner. If successful, Cuba would be the first Latin American country to make its own vaccine — and it’s not a farfetched scenario. The island has a history of vaccine development, including a lung cancer vaccine now in trials at a U.S. cancer center.