African countries have had mixed successes with rolling out vaccines. Some countries rolled out vaccines in record time while others destroyed or returned doses supplied by the COVAX facility as they were unable to use them before expiry.
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But for those countries that managed to roll out vaccines effectively, health experts fear that the success and the goodwill garnered from the public are now at risk due to supply challenges.
Speaking at a Devex event on the sidelines of the 74th World Health Assembly, Dr. Richard Mihigo, immunization and vaccine development program coordinator at World Health Organization’s Regional Office for Africa, said though Africa prepared well, the supply did not really follow the preparation of countries.
He said so far, globally close to 1.5 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered, compared to only 28 million doses in Africa. He noted that the gap is growing wider as many countries are awaiting additional doses.
AstraZeneca eyes donations to fill vaccine supply gap amid India demand
But at a Devex event, AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot says filling the vaccine supply gap left by the Serum Institute of India is difficult as AstraZeneca's other manufacturing sites are already very stretched.
Why it matters: Dr. Austin Demby, minister of health and sanitation in Sierra Leone, said his country was able to utilize lessons learned from dealing with Ebola and has successfully garnered public interest and excitement in the COVID-19 vaccination campaign, but they are worried supply shortages will hinder the rollout.
“We have now high uptake, high interest but we are worried that we may not be able to resupply, and one of the biggest concerns we have is, if we have an interruption in our supply after we have raised so much demand, so much interest, it will be very very difficult to re-engage later on,” he said.
What’s next: “Countries are ready to roll out vaccines if they have got supply. I think they need some predictability in terms of the supply part right now,” Mihigo said.
Update, May 27, 2021: This article was updated after WHO clarified that 28 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered in Africa.
About the author
Rumbi Chakamba
Rumbi Chakamba is a Senior Editor at Devex based in Botswana, who has worked with regional and international publications including News Deeply, The Zambezian, Outriders Network, and Global Sisters Report. She holds a bachelor's degree in international relations from the University of South Africa.
