China has promised to give millions of coronavirus vaccines to countries around the world. And he is ready to deliver them

12/02/2020 Health, Technology, World


Security personnel in face masks, surgical gowns and rubber gloves are guards. Anyone entering this part of the warehouse must complete a two-week quarantine or wear a head-to-toe leggings.

In the coming months, China will send millions of doses of the coronavirus vaccine to countries that have conducted final-stage tests for its leading candidates. Chinese leaders have also promised a list of developing countries to prioritize until its successful vaccination.

Yanzong Huang, a senior global health ally at the Washington-based Council on Foreign Relations, said the vaccine could be used by Beijing as a “foreign policy tool to promote soft power and international influence.”

At the outset of the epidemic, China’s efforts to donate masks and other supplies to countries hardest hit by the virus were tarnished by reports of poor quality supplies, and it was alleged that Beijing was launching a disintegration campaign to change the story of the coronavirus.

Beijing Vaccine Diplomacy, Huang That said, it could offer a second chance.

“Vaccine Diplomacy”

China currently has five coronavirus candidates from four companies that have reached Phase 3 clinical trials, the last and most important step of testing before seeking regulatory approval.

After large-scale removal of coronavirus within its borders, Chinese drug manufacturers had to look abroad for locations to test the effectiveness of their vaccines. Together, they have launched Phase 3 trials in at least 16 countries.

In turn, many host countries are promised early access to successful vaccines – and in some cases, technology knows how to make them locally.

Beijing-based Nasdaq-listed drugmaker Sinovac Biotech has signed a deal to supply 46 million doses of its Covid-19 vaccine to Brazil and 50 million doses to Turkey. It will also supply 40 million doses of vaccine quantity – concentrate before the vaccine is distributed in small vials. – Indonesia for domestic production.
Cancino Biologics, which is developing a coronavirus vaccine with a Chinese military research unit, will deliver 35 million doses of its vaccine to Mexico, one of the five host countries for its testing.
China National Biotech Group (CNBG), a unit of state-owned pharmaceutical giant China National Pharmaceutical Group (Synopharm), is less open about its deals. The company’s two vaccine candidates are undergoing Phase 3 testing in 10 countries, mostly in the Middle East and South America. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, ruler of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates Voluntary The test will be vaccinated and the vaccine was approved for emergency use. The Emirati company, in partnership with Synopharm, hopes to make 75 to 100 million doses next year.
Sinofarm chairman Liu Jingzhen said last month that dozens of countries had requested the company to buy the vaccine. He did not name the countries or elaborate on the dosage they suggested, but said CNBG was capable of producing more than a billion doses in 2021.

Huang said China not only has the political will (for its vaccine diplomacy), but also a strong ability to be.

Since China is largely infected with the virus, there is no immediate need to vaccinate everyone in its 1.4 billion population. “He gives this vaccine … to deal with countries that need vaccines,” he said.

“Health Silk Road”

China’s global vaccination campaign is at odds with the Trump administration’s “America First” approach, which focuses on vaccinating its own citizens first.

“So far we have not heard the suggestion from the US that they record the percentage of their vaccines to support poor countries. So China is in a better position to use the vaccine for its foreign policy purposes.” Said.

In October, China joined a World Health Organization-backed global initiative to ensure the rapid and equitable distribution of the Covid-19 vaccine equally to rich and poor countries.

The project, known as COVAX, is designed to prevent governments from stockpiling coronavirus vaccines and instead focus on vaccinating high-risk groups in each country. But it was repealed by the United States, Partly because President Donald Trump did not want to work with the WHO, the global public health leadership left a vacuum to fill China.

From the beginning, Chinese leaders have repeatedly insisted that China’s vaccines are specifically for sharing with the developing world.

Chinese President Xi Jinping speaks via a video link to the World Health Assembly on a large screen next to an alley in Beijing on May 18.
In May, Chinese President Xi Jinping told the WHO’s annual assembly that China would make its coronavirus vaccine a “global public good”, contributing to ensuring the vaccine’s accessibility and affordability in developing countries.

At a video summit with African leaders in June, Xi promised that “once the Covid-19 vaccine is developed and deployed in China, African countries will be among the first to benefit.”

In August Gust, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said Beijing would also give priority access to Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam. Other countries that have been promised priority access by Chinese officials include Afghanistan and Malaysia.

Many of these countries are also in Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative, a multibillion-dollar infrastructure facility and trade program that has lost some of its steam during the epidemic. Recently, Chinese officials have stepped up talk of a “health silk road.” At a meeting of the WHO in May, Shi promised to donate 2 billion over two years to help countries cope with the epidemic. Beijing has also lent અમેરિકા 1 billion to Latin America and the Caribbean to access its coronavirus vaccines.
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But there are signs that China’s vaccine diplomacy will not always be an easy ride. In Brazil, Sinovac’s vaccine is embroiled in a political feud between Coronavac, President Jair Bolsonoro, known for his anti-China stance – and Sao Paulo’s governor, Joao Doria, who is expected to fight Bolosonaro. The country’s next presidential election in 2022. In Bangladesh, Sinowak’s trial has stalled due to a funding dispute.
International public health experts have also questioned China’s emergency use program, in which about 10 million Chinese people were inoculated with experimental vaccines before safety was proven by clinical trials.

Then there is the question of effectiveness. Last month, Pfizer and Moderna announced that preliminary results showed their vaccine to be more than 90% effective, while the average effectiveness of the other candidate, produced jointly by Oxford University and AstraZeneca, is 70%. So far, no Chinese vaccine candidate has announced preliminary efficacy results, although company officials have repeatedly stressed their safety, insisting that no serious adverse effects have been observed among vaccinated volunteers.

Cold storage

Compared to Pfizer and Moderna, Chinese vaccines have a decisive advantage – most of them do not require temperature cooling for storage, making transportation and distribution much easier, especially in developing countries that lack cold storage capacity.

Kate O’Brien, director of immunization and vaccination at WHHU, compares the development of the vaccine to create a base camp on Everest. “But climbing to the top is really about delivering the vaccine,” he told a news conference last month.

Both Pfizer and Moderna vaccines use pieces of a genetic material called Messenger RNA (mRNA) to create artificial fragments of coronavirus in the body and stimulate the immune response – a new technology not used in existing vaccines.

But mRNA is sensitive to degradation at room temperature. The Moderna vaccine must be stored at -20 સે C (-4 ફેર F) or refrigerator temperature for 30 days, while the Pfizer vaccine must be stored at -75 -C (-103). ˚F), and used in refrigeration at high temperatures once within five days.
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Synopharm and Synovac, meanwhile, use an older method approach that has long been effective in other vaccines such as polio and flu shots. Their coronavirus vaccines use inactivated whole viruses to help the body develop immunity, and only need to be stored at a standard refrigerator temperature of 2˚C to 8˚C (36˚F to 46˚F). The cannabinoid vaccine, which uses a common cold virus called adenovirus 5 to carry genetic fragments of coronavirus into the body, can also be kept from 2˚C to 8˚C.

Still, the required temperature must be maintained throughout transport, from production facility to airport storage and finally to global delivery.

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba’s logistics arm will help deliver canines, Chinese vaccines as soon as possible. It says its end-to-end climate-controlled infrastructure is in place and ready.

The company has partnered with Shenzhen Baon International Airport, which recently obtained a certificate of pharmaceutical logistics from the International Air Transport Association. The cold-chain warehouse for frozen food and goods was built in 2019. Earlier this year, it was converted to coronavirus test kits – and now to vaccine storage. The airport said on its website that it wants to make Shenzhen a “Covid-19 vaccine global delivery base”.
Kenyao has partnered with Ethiopian Airlines to distribute the Chinese-made coronavirus vaccine abroad.

Kenyao is also in partnership with Ethiopian Airlines, which will send the Chinese vaccine to the Middle East and then to Africa. Due to the epidemic, the airline has flown more than 3,000 tons of medical supplies from Shenzhen to Europe, Africa, the Middle East and South America.

But Kenyans are also looking to add more avenues to its global reach, said its CEO Van Lin.

“Of course, we’re not yet sure about that specific demand, but we’re definitely building our capacity to be ready for it,” Van said.

CNN’s Emma Reynolds contributed to the story.

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