Rich countries should donate part of their stock of Mexican flu vaccines to developing countries, says the World Health Organisation (WHO), which is responsible for making sure all countries can get hold of the vaccine. In the Netherlands a majority of MPs appear to be in favour of donating vaccines to the WHO.

The organisation has more than 200 million doses of the H1N1 vaccine at its disposal. Two thirds have been donated by vaccine producers, the rest comes from donor countries. However, the World Health Organisation says it needs at least 300 million doses. Nine countries – including the United States, Brazil and France - have promised to donate ten percent of their stock to the WHO. A number of political parties think the Netherlands should follow suit.

Waste not want not
Health Minister Ab Klink ordered 34 million vaccines against Mexican flu back in the spring, that is two doses for every person living in the country. But now that only high-risk groups will be given flu jabs, a large quantity will be left over. This could be used in developing countries and it would be a waste to throw it away, thinks Christian Union MP Esmé Wiegman. She believes it should be possible to donate a couple of million to the WHO.

"I don't know exactly how many vaccinations we need in the Netherlands. Not every person needs a vaccination and maybe we don't need two flu shots. So, well maybe it can be millions."

Rudimentary care
Ms Wiegman finds it worrying that developing countries are at the back of the queue for vaccines. Not to mention the difficulties they will face in distributing them. In Senegal, the government has begun a public information campaign, but the health clinics and the population have got other things on their minds, says correspondent Joost van Egmond in Senegalese capital Dakar:

"Cities have the means to fight any epidemic that might occur. The story is completely different in the countryside. It's malaria season right now and the rudimentary healthcare system there expects thousands and thousands of cases. It may be simply too much to ask of them to also keep a watchful eye out for Mexican flu. And the means are scarce. A coordinator for almost a thousand health huts in the Senegalese countryside told me that these rudimentary one-room health shops, have no way to test for Mexican flu and they don't have any medication."

Immediate action
A number of political parties in The Hague are demanding the health minister takes immediate action. Green Left MP Jolande Sap goes the furthest, asking for around 6.8 million doses of the vaccine to be sent to developing countries:

"We have a lot of vaccines we don't need here right now. So we could donate ten percent and I will even try to get the minister to go as far as to donate twenty percent."

Flu explosion
The World Health Organisation warns that poor medical care in developing countries means the H1N1 virus could cause a real ‘flu explosion’ in developing countries. It wants to vaccinate health workers in these countries first of all. Once that group is protected, then it is the turn of the high-risk groups.