COVAX
COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access, abbreviated as COVAX, is a worldwide initiative aimed at equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines directed by the GAVI vaccine alliance, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), and the World Health Organization (WHO), alongside key delivery partner UNICEF. It is one of the four pillars of the Access to COVID-19 Tools Accelerator, an initiative begun in April 2020 by the WHO, the European Commission, and the government of France as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic. COVAX coordinates international resources to enable low-to-middle-income countries equitable access to COVID-19 tests, therapies, and vaccines.[1] UNICEF is the key delivery partner, leveraging its experience as the largest single vaccine buyer in the world and working on the procurement of COVID-19 vaccine doses, as well as logistics, country readiness and in-country delivery.
Not to be confused with Covaxin or Covovax.
By 19 October 2020, 184 countries had joined COVAX.[2]
COVAX began distributing vaccines in February 2021. Though COVAX promised 100 million doses by the end of March,[3][4] this goal was not reached until 6 July.[5] By mid-August 2021, COVAX delivered 200 million vaccine doses to nearly 140 countries instead of the 600 million doses initially projected. The continued shortage of COVID-19 vaccines delivered through COVAX is blamed on "vaccine nationalism" by richer nations, and the diversion of 400 million Oxford–AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine doses, produced under license by the Serum Institute of India (SII), for domestic use in India.[6] As of April 2022, more than 1.4 billion doses were delivered, when the largest recipients were Bangladesh (183 mil. of doses), Pakistan (112 mil.) and Indonesia (104 million).[7]
History[edit]
In April 2020 the World Health Organization (WHO), the European Commission, and the government of France founded the Access to COVID-19 Tools Accelerator, an initiative begun as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic. COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access (COVAX) is one of its four pillars. It is a worldwide initiative aimed at equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines directed by the GAVI vaccine alliance, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), and the WHO, alongside key delivery partner UNICEF.
COVAX coordinates international resources to enable low-to-middle-income countries equitable access to COVID-19 tests, therapies, and vaccines.[1]
A financing instrument called the COVID-19 Vaccines Advance Market Commitment (COVAX AMC) was presented to prospective donors at the Gavi COVAX AMC 2021 Investment Opportunity Launch Event, otherwise named One World Protected, on 15 April 2021.[8] The virtual event was hosted by GAVI board chair José Manuel Barroso, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and acting United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Administrator Gloria Steele.[9] Among the attendees were heads of state, corporate leaders and representatives from global nonprofit organizations.[10] The program was fully launched by GAVI at the Global Vaccine Summit on 4 June 2021.[11]
Vaccine candidates[edit]
As of 23 December 2021, the WHO had approved Oxford–AstraZeneca, Pfizer–BioNTech, Moderna, Sinopharm BIBP, CoronaVac, Janssen, Covaxin, and Novavax vaccines for emergency use.[12][13][14]
These vaccines can be distributed as part of COVAX per decision in May 2021.[15][16]
Many of the countries benefitting from COVAX have "limited regulatory capacity" and depend on WHO's authorisations. By early 2021, WHO was reviewing 11 potential COVID-19 vaccines for its Emergency Use Listing (EUL).[17] The first vaccine WHO authorised for its EUL on 31 December 2020 was the Pfizer–BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine—an RNA vaccine developed by the German company BioNTech in cooperation with the American company Pfizer sold under the brand name Comirnaty.[18][19][20]
On 24 August 2020 WHO stated that COVAX had nine CEPI-supported vaccine candidates and nine candidates undergoing trials, giving it the largest selection of COVID-19 vaccinations in the world.[21] By December 2020, COVAX had finalized negotiations with other manufacturers that gave it access to two billion vaccine doses.[22]