প্রকাশ: 23/01/2022
Covax aims to break the Covid-19 pandemic in 2022 by
ensuring a steady supply of vaccines at last for the world's poorest countries
-- and swiftly getting them into arms.
The global scheme, aimed at procuring donor-funded jabs for
the 91 weakest economies, delivered its one billionth dose last weekend -- a
major milestone that came far later than anticipated after a year of setbacks.
The battle for Covax in 2021 was getting hold of doses --
besides rich countries cornering most of the vaccine supply, it faced export
bans from producer countries, regulatory red tape and manufacturing delays.
Rather than bulk-bought jabs, the scheme ended up relying on
doses donated by wealthy nations, which too often were about to expire and
couldn't be used in time.
Covax sees the new front in 2022 as smoothing the supply
chain -- from a reliable stream off the production lines to efficient
distribution set-ups in recipient countries.
The facility is co-led by the World Health Organization
(WHO); the Gavi vaccine alliance, which handles procurement; and CEPI, the
Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, which invests in prospective
vaccines.
- 'Inequity 2.0' fear
-
Covax this week called for $5.2 billion over the next three
months to steady the ship this year.
"We can break the cycle of transmission and the pain
and suffering," Gavi chief Seth Berkley told the funding drive launch.
However, "what we do not have today are the resources
to help countries adapt to the new challenges that we know Covid-19 will create
in 2022".
Covax therefore wants to build a pool of 600 million doses
to ensure a reliable supply, and to cover eventual variables such as boosters
or new variant-specific vaccines.
It also needs to support readiness and delivery in poorer
nations, and cover the costs of syringes and transportation.
"I think we'll still have rocky supply for the next six
months or so and I'm a little worried, frankly, if there are new variant
vaccines, that we might have an inequity 2.0," said Berkley.
Covax reckons it has enough confirmed vaccine supplies to
jab 45 percent of the population in the poorest 91 economies.
But the WHO wants 70 percent fully jabbed in every country
by July to end the acute phase of the pandemic -- a much bigger stretch, given
how far behind many countries are, especially in Africa, where more than 85
percent of people are yet to receive a single dose.
At the current pace of vaccine roll-out, 109 countries will
miss the mid-2022 target, the WHO has said.
- 'Back on track' –
Covax was launched in June 2020, when few would have
imagined that several highly effective vaccines would emerge within nine
months. Historically, the vast majority of potential vaccines fail.
The first Covax doses were administered in March 2021,
"but then we hit barrier after barrier", said Berkley.
"We were able to get this back on track -- and now
you're seeing an accelerated drive towards getting vaccines out."
The next billion doses are expected to take four to five
months to deliver.
Of the billion doses delivered so far, around 285 million
were AstraZeneca, 260 million Pfizer, 150 million Moderna, 125 million Janssen,
95 million Sinopharm and 85 million Sinovac.
Only WHO-approved vaccines can be used, of which there are
eight so far. The latest is a major CEPI-funded vaccine, Novavax, which could
do much of the heavy lifting in 2022.
- Jabs for all
'achievable' -
CEPI chief executive Richard Hatchett said the target was
now building capacity in poorer countries to roll out mass vaccination at
speed.
"The last mile is going to be the major challenge for
2022," he told a World Economic Forum session.
Up to 25 countries need particular help getting their vaccination
programme in shape.
Overall, some 9.8 billion Covid-19 vaccine doses have been
administered around the world. Covax jabs account for 82 percent of injections
in the 91 poorest economies.
The top Covax donor-funded dose recipients so far are
Bangladesh with 130 million, Indonesia 87 million, Pakistan 77 million and the
Philippines 66 million.
Hatchett said that with the manufacturing capacity now
available, helping poorer countries turn those doses into vaccinations could
transform the course of the pandemic.
Whether primary vaccination or a booster, getting a jab to
everyone who wants one "is an achievable goal in 2022", he insisted.
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