LONDON: An ambitious humanitarian project to deliver coronavirus vaccines to the world's poorest people is facing potential shortages of money, cargo planes, refrigeration and vaccines themselves – and running into scepticism even from some of those it is intended to help most.
It is being led by the World Health Organization , a UN agency; GAVI, a public-private alliance funded in part by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which buys immunisations for 60 per cent of the world’s children; and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations another Gates-supported public-private collaboration.
GAVI, WHO and CEPI announced in September that countries representing two-thirds of the world's population had joined COVAX, but they acknowledged they still need about US$400 million more from governments or elsewhere. Without it, according to internal documents seen by the Associated Press before the organisation's board meeting this week, GAVI cannot sign agreements to buy vaccines.
Dr Clemens Auer, who sits on WHO's executive board and was the EU's lead negotiator for its vaccine deals, said there is a troubling lack of transparency about how COVAX will work. Another obstacle: Many of the leading vaccine candidates require two doses. That will mean twice as many syringes, twice as much waste disposal, and the complications involved in ensuring patients in remote corners of the world receive the second dose on time and stay free of side effects.
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