The World Health Organization is launching a "landmark" international collaboration to accelerate development, production and equitable distribution of vaccines against COVID-19, the UN body's chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus declared on Friday.

The World Health Organisation has announced a “landmark collaboration” to speed up the development and production of Covid-19 vaccines, drugs, and tests that will be made universally available across the globe.

On Friday, WHO announced an ‘Access to Covid Tools’ Accelerator initiative that will harness global efforts to develop a vaccine and other drugs, as well as tests, to manage the pandemic.

“We’re coordinating a global trial on the safety and efficacy of four therapeutics against Covid-19. The world needs these tools, and it needs them fast,” Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.

“The ACT Accelerator brings together the combined power of several organisations to work with speed and scale,” Dr Ghebreyesus added.

The announcement saw political leaders and heads of state joining leaders and experts from the medical and scientific community to commit to working towards a vaccine that will be made universally available.

The European Union is joining forces with France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Norway and Saudi Arabia to kick-start the funding campaign, which starts on May 4.