Covax Has A Big Vaccine Shortfall. Hope Deliveries From Serum Will Ramp Up Soon

The global COVAX initiative was started in 2020 for the equitable distribution of Covid-19 vaccines. However, its vaccine delivery schedule was thrown off course by the ferocity of India’s second surge which forced the Serum Institute to stop exports and cater to pressing domestic needs. Gavi the Vaccine Alliance, a key pillar of COVAX, is determined to support India and secure 1.8 billion vaccines for 91 lower-income countries. Its CEO, Dr Seth Berkley, recently ranked 14th in Fortune’s World’s 50 Greatest Leaders, spoke to Bachi Karkaria on its success so far, the India challenge and how the world must meet it to save itself

- Bachi Karkaria

The COVAX alliance aims to achieve vaccine equity on a global level. How happy are you with the progress so far?

In June 2020, Gavi launched the COVAX Advance Market Commitment (AMC) to raise cash to procure 1.3 billion vaccines, or enough to protect the most vulnerable sections in 91 lower-income economies. Given India’s size, we undertook to allot 20% of all AMC doses, as well as 20% of all funding available for technical support. We have secured more than enough doses to achieve this. This week, at the Gavi COVAX AMC summit we raised $2.4 billion (bringing the total funding to $9.6 billion). This is enough to procure another 500 million doses which can protect nearly 30% of the population in each of these 91 countries in 2021/early 2022. The speed too is notable. COVAX’s first dose was delivered in India only 39 days after the first mass vaccination began in the UK. Six weeks later, when WHO granted emergency use listing for the Oxford-Astra/Zeneca and Serum Institute of India (SII) vaccines, we began delivering elsewhere. I am also proud that today, 192 countries are actively supporting a global response to Covid-19.

And your biggest disappointment?