Countries hit hard by humanitarian crises have also been disadvantaged by a far weaker response to Covid-19 than wealthier states, Reuters quoted the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement as saying on Wednesday.

Countries that are not dealing with humanitarian crises have reported nearly 48 times more Covid-19 tests per capita than those facing ‘severe’ or ‘very severe’ humanitarian crises, according to a new analysis.

The 32 worst crisis-hit countries had also seen fewer than 2 per cent of Covid-19 vaccine doses administered globally, it said, despite their having nearly 19 per cent of the world’s population.

“What our data shows is that the response to Covid-19 also discriminates,” said Jagan Chapagain, Secretary General of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.