Our faculty members Prof. Dr. Selva Demiralp and Assistant Professors Cem Çakmaklı, Sevcan Yesiltas, and Muhammed Ali Yıldırım from the College of Administrative Sciences and Economics, in collaboration with Sebnem Kalemli Ozcan from the University of Maryland, calculated the global economic costs of COVID-19 vaccine in the absence of equitable vaccine distribution.

The findings from the study illustrate that the costs of inequitable vaccine distribution far exceed the costs of manufacturing and distribution of vaccines globally.

The key takeaway from the study is that equitable distribution of vaccines is not only a humanitarian concern but also an economic one. The working paper version of the study is published in the NBER and CEPR.

The research was launched by the World Health Organization (WHO) on January 25 and it is covered in major news networks including the New York TimesFinancial Times, The Wall Street Journal, The GuardianThe Washington PostBBC MarketplaceThe New Yorker as well as the Economist.