Serum Institute of India (SII), the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer by volume, Gavi, The Vaccine Alliance, a public-private global health partnership that aims to increase access to immunization in poor countries, and the Foundation Bill and Melinda Gates would accelerate the Manufacturing and delivery of up to 100 million doses of the safe and effective coronavirus disease (Covid-19) to India and other low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) as part of Gavi COVAX AMC, a mechanism within the COVAX facility, the Pune-based firm announced on Tuesday.
COVAX Facility seeks to pool resources to accelerate the development of the most promising Coviod-19 candidates and plans to make it equally accessible to all participating countries, regardless of financial strength.
The initiative brings the total number of vaccine doses the association will cover to a total of up to 200 million doses, following the initial deal of up to 100 million doses, which was announced in August.
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In addition to other partnerships, SII has also entered into a manufacturing partnership with AstraZeneca to produce the Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine.
Preparations are underway for phase 3 trials of the candidate vaccine in India.
The collaboration will provide seed capital to SII to help increase manufacturing capacity. Once a vaccine gains regulatory approval and prequalification from the World Health Organization (WHO), doses can be distributed to low- and middle-income countries beginning in the first half of next year.
“The collaboration further strengthens our fight against Covid-19! Through the avid support of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, we will manufacture and deliver up to 100 million additional doses of future immunogenic and proven safe Covid-19 vaccines to India and at low and medium levels. Income countries in 2021, ”said Adar Poonawalla, SII Chief Executive Officer (CEO), in a statement.
“At this stage, it is important that governments, public and private sector global health and financial institutions come together to ensure that no one is left behind on the road to recovery. This partnership is in line with our efforts to bring future vaccines to the most remote part of the world by providing comprehensive immunization coverage in an attempt to contain the spread of the pandemic, “he added.
The funding will help accelerate SII manufacturing of licensed vaccine candidates from AstraZeneca and Novavax, which will be available for purchase if they are fully licensed and prequalified by WHO.
Vaccines will have a maximum price of $ 3 per dose. The price is enabled by investments made by partners such as the Coalition for Innovations in Preparedness for Epidemics (CEPI), the Gates Foundation and the SII.
“This is the manufacture of vaccines for the Global South, by the Global South, which helps us ensure that no country is left behind when it comes to access to a Covid-19 vaccine,” said Dr. Seth Berkley , CEO of Gavi, The Vaccine Alliance. “The momentum behind our effort to ensure global and equitable access to Covid-19 vaccines is really growing …” he added.
Gavi COVAX AMC, which is seeking at least $ 2 billion in seed funding, will cover at least part of the cost of acquiring the vaccine doses. The Gavi board has agreed on the final list of 92 countries that will be supported by Gavi COVAX AMC.
Under the new collaboration, AstraZeneca’s vaccine candidate, if successful, will be available to 61 Gavi-eligible countries.
The Novavax candidate, if successful, will be available to all 92 countries supported by Gavi COVAX AMC. These countries are aligned with the SII’s licensing agreements with its two partners.
The collaboration of Gavi, SII and the Gates Foundation supports the efforts of the Access to Covid-19 Tools Accelerator vaccine pillar, also known as COVAX, co-led by Gavi, CEPI and WHO, to accelerate the development of vaccines for the viral outbreak. and guarantee fast and global access to them.
Decisions around manufacturing investment are made in close collaboration between these three leading COVAX pillar organizations.
So far, 73 higher-income economies have pledged to join the program, in addition to the 92 low- and middle-income economies that are eligible for support.
“The Gates Foundation will provide at-risk funds of another $ 150 million to Gavi, bringing the total funding provided through this collaboration to $ 300 million. This will be used to support the SII in manufacturing potential vaccine candidates and for future procurement of vaccines for India and low- and middle-income countries through Gavi’s COVAX AMC, ”according to a statement issued by SII.
“The agreement is in addition to a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between AstraZeneca and Gavi, which was announced in June and will allocate an additional 300 million doses of AstraZeneca’s candidate vaccine to the larger COVAX facility, to be delivered with the license or WHO prequalification. These two agreements can help ensure access to early doses for the most vulnerable on a truly global scale, ”the statement added.
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