Global Initiatives Bringing Covid-19 Vaccines to Low-Income Countries
It has been reported that nine out of ten people in poor nations could miss out on coronavirus vaccinations due to the amounts of the most promising vaccines already secured by the western bloc. However, there are international initiatives putting exceptional effort into making the highly effective vaccines accessible also by the low-income countries in need.
The issue with global vaccine distribution
With the new Coronavirus vaccines, every nation is doing their best to secure as many doses to immunize their population as possible in the shortest amount of time. Unfortunately, countries within the developing world have been in a much more disadvantaged position in this new stage of the vaccine race from the very start.
According to the head of the World Health Organisation, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the actions taken by the western countries threaten the access of the vaccines available for the poorer rest of the world. The data shows that over 53% of the global vaccine supply has been already secured by countries with the strongest economies. Likewise, those richest nations, have already bought 96% of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, reported to be the most effective Covid-19 vaccine produced so far (95% efficacy rate).
Yet apart from the low access of the vaccines, its relatively high price, particular storing conditions and different efficacy rates, all complicate the distribution issue even further. The two most effective vaccines, Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech, can only be kept in temperatures lower than -70 degrees. The two vaccines said to be much easier to obtain in the developing world, Sinovac and Sinopharm, both from China, however, are less effective at providing herd immunity to the population, with their accuracy rate showing only 50%. The other alternatives are the Oxford-AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson vaccines, being not only more effective (70% efficacy rate) than the Chinese counterparts, but also designed to be easily kept in refrigerators (the two are cheaper than the most wanted Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech). It is said that 64% of the Oxford vaccine will already go to poorer countries, yet one company alone cannot supply the whole of the developing world.
Initiatives towards making it accessible in low-income countries
Most low-income countries rely on the COVAX scheme conducted by the World Health Organisation, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations. This is the first and the main global Covid-19 vaccine program, which aims to deliver 2 billion doses of the approved vaccines to people in 91 poor and middle-income nations by the end of this year, that way guaranteeing to cover 20% of those most prone to the virus in the developing world. Nevertheless, COVAX does not provide fully reimbursed vaccines — the countries will have to pay a subsidised price of up to $4 per a double dose. According to WHO, the first doses of the vaccine will be available in the poorest countries in February.
UNICEF is another organisation conducting a worldwide vaccine programme, through which they have committed to deliver up to 850 tonnes of doses to developing countries a month. What’s more, UNICEF is also in charge of installing 70 000 cold chain fridges, some of them solar-powered, by the end of 2021 — essential for storing the vaccines properly, especially in hotter climates.
The most recent initiative intending to widen the delivery of Covid-19 vaccines comes form Zipline, a medical delivery company, and its deal with Nigeria’s Kaduna state. The collaboration will enable Kaduna and other states in Nigeria to obtain on-demand deliveries of more precise amounts of the Pfizer vaccines and is said to provide Covid-19 vaccines to millions of Nigerians. Although this particular vaccine needs to be kept in -70C, Zipline facilitates its easy delivery and storage by using cool boxes filled with dry ice. The company has already worked with Ghana, Rwanda and the United States, where it regularly delivers vaccines, blood and other medical equipment.
Apart from previously mentioned global vaccine schemes, some higher-income countries have also pledged to help make the Covid-19 vaccines in the developing world. The African Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has set up a plan to vaccinate 1.3 billion people in 54 countries, which corresponds with immunising 60% of the population in two years. Australia has offered to donate vaccine doses to poorer neighbouring nations, such as Vanuatu and Kiribati. Similarly, China promised to share their vaccine doses with Burna, Cambodia and the Philippines. In addition, the European Union announced a plan to donate 5% of their purchased Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines for the countries in need. Although the plan has not yet been agreed on, it would mean that 65 million doses of the most effective vaccines would go towards the poorest.
The global distribution of Covid-19 vaccines is a much complicated and disturbed process, highlighting various inequalities already existing within the nations. Hopefully, through the work of these passionate, determined organisations and schemes mentioned, a widely spread access to highly effective vaccines in low-income countries will only be a matter of time.