Africa left with few vaccine options, says South Africa

Africa has few options for purchasing Covid-19 vaccines as the outbreak of the disease worsens in many parts of the continent, the South African presidency said.

Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE offered to supply Africa with 50 million Covid-19 vaccines for healthcare professionals between March and the end of this year, the presidency said in response to Bloomberg on Sunday. Moderna Inc. does not supply supplies to Africa, while AstraZeneca Plc has no shots for the continent in 2021 and has instructed the African Union to negotiate with Serum Institute of India Ltd., which is making the vaccine on behalf of AstraZeneca. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa is the president of the African Union.

Ramaphosa’s response comes after days of fierce criticism in South Africa over the country’s vaccination strategy by health leaders, unions and opposition parties. Although four vaccine trials are underway in the country, South Africa has only managed to buy enough vaccines for 10% of its population of 60 million people through the Covax initiative, which aims to ensure equitable access to vaccines. They are likely to start arriving in the second quarter. Some African countries have their own vaccine procurement plans. Most don’t.

“We are working hard in South Africa and the continent to protect our people from Covid-19,” said the presidency.

South Africa is experiencing a record number of infections and deaths and neighboring Zimbabwe is entering a strict 30-day blockade. The South African economy It probably contracted more in nine decades last year, according to official estimates.

In an emailed statement, an AstraZeneca representative said the company “has created a series of supply chains around the world to provide a broad and equitable supply of the vaccine.” The statement cited Covax and the Serum Institute of India as the main channels through which African countries can access vaccines.

‘Prohibitive’ cost

The cost of Pfizer’s vaccines is “prohibitive,” said the presidency. A Pfizer representative confirmed the negotiations with the African Union, declining to give further details.

In a subsequent statement, a UK-based Pfizer representative said the company remained “firmly committed to equitable access to Covid-19 vaccines”.

“We allocate doses to supply low- and medium-low-income countries at a non-profit price and are actively working with governments around the world,” wrote the email statement said.

Discussions are taking place with Johnson & Johnson, who is conducting a test in South Africa and plans to make 300 million doses a year at a factory in the country owned by Aspen Pharmacare Holdings Ltd. when the injection is approved.

J&J “has not clarified whether Africa will benefit from vaccines made in South Africa,” said the presidency. “We still have to negotiate the price that is affordable for Africa.”

South Africa is in direct talks with vaccine suppliers, including J&J, AstraZeneca and Pfizer, on supplies for the country, the presidency said. The South African health product regulator is using the so-called continuous review, which allows it to evaluate vaccine data as it becomes available during testing to assess the J&J injection. This will do the same for AstraZeneca and Pfizer when they apply.

Wealthier nations

African countries would be in a better position to gain early access to AstraZeneca and other vaccines if they were “as strategic” as the wealthier nations and initiated talks directly with producers and in parallel with initial efforts to ensure access to Covax, Shabir Madhi , a professor of vaccinologist and head of the South African arm of the AstraZeneca study, told Bloomberg.

“The Covax facility, While noble in its mission of social solidarity for equitable access to vaccines, it was never likely to break the legacy of the delay it takes before life-saving vaccines become available to low- and middle-income countries, ”said Madhi.

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