On May 21, millions of dollars and doses were pledged to Covax, bringing the total number of doses promised so far to more than 150 million.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has called for vaccine donations to the Covax mechanism to enable the administration of 2 billion doses of coronavirus vaccines throughout 2021 , and has warned of the "traumatic effects" of the surge in cases in South Asia, which has "severely" impacted global vaccine supplies.
“We must focus on ensuring that countries that have not yet benefited from these life-saving tools do so now and urgently. As a global mechanism for equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines, COVAX has proven that it works,” the UN agency said.
Since February, COVAX has administered more than 70 million doses to 126 countries and economies worldwide, and more than 35 countries received their first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine through this mechanism. However, the devastating surge of infections in India severely impacted COVAX's supply in the second quarter of this year, to the point that, by the end of June, it was facing a shortfall of 190 million doses.
Covax has administered more than 70 million doses to 126 countries
On May 21, millions of dollars and doses were pledged to COVAX, bringing the total number of doses promised so far to over 150 million. At the World Health Assembly, governments united to recognize the political and financial urgency of supporting COVAX with doses and funding.
“It is now imperative to build on this momentum to secure full funding for COVAX and obtain more vaccines for low-income countries at the Advanced Markets Engagement Summit on June 2. If world leaders unite, COVAX’s original goals— delivering 2 billion doses of vaccines globally in 2021 and 1.8 billion doses to 92 lower-income economies by early 2022— are still within reach,” the WHO stated.
To achieve this, the organization has asked countries to fund Gavi's Advance Market Commitment (AMC); share vaccine doses with the countries most in need; and release patents. "It is understandable that some countries want to move forward and vaccinate their entire populations. By donating vaccines to COVAX alongside national vaccination programs, the highest-risk populations can be protected globally, which is critical to ending the acute phase of the pandemic, curbing the rise and threat of variants, and accelerating the return to normalcy," it concluded.